As Investors Anticipate a 25 Basis Point Fed Rate Hike, USD/CAD Corrects To Near 1.3700

The USD/CAD pair is evidencing a corrective movement after failing to sustain a recovery above 1.3740 during the Asian session. Following a decline in Canada's inflation data, the Canadian dollar rebounded strongly from Monday's level of 1.3660. The falling Canadian Consumer Price Index (CPI) data confirmed that the Bank of Canada (BoC) could maintain its current policy stance.

Governor Tiff Macklem of the Bank of Canada maintains the status quo because he believes that the monetary policy is sufficiently restrictive to achieve price stability. However, BoC Macklem has left the door open for additional increases if the plan for reducing inflation fails.

Statistics Canada reported that the monthly inflation rate has increased by 0.4%, which is less than both the consensus estimate of 0.6% and the previous release of 0.5%. The headline CPI declined from 5.4% (consensus) and 5.8% to 5.2%. (previous release). The annual core CPI, which excludes the costs of fuel and food, decreased to 4.7% from 5.0%, but remained above the 4.4% forecast. The Bank of Canada, which has already increased interest rates to 4.5%, found the overall decline in inflation to be quite impressive.

In the interim, S&P500 futures are performing unfavorably after two days of intense buying. The odds favor the Federal Reserve increasing interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) for the second consecutive meeting. (Fed). As concerns of banking sector turmoil persist, the US Dollar Index (DXY) struggles to maintain its position above 103.20. In addition, analysts from UBS believe that tighter credit standards, economic contraction, and falling inflation could prompt the Fed to reduce interest rates this year.