Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Dutch Central Bank Sale Announcement Imminent? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: philv who wrote (22625)	3/12/2005 10:06:56 PM
From: The Wharf	Respond to of 81187

This is not what I read but is similar in vein, darn I wished I knew where I was reading.I would hate to be sending you Kleenex. VBG reuters.ca Business Canada Trade Surplus Hits 2-Year Low in January Fri March 11, 2005 11:24 AM GMT-05:00 By Luke McCann OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's trade surplus fell to a two-year low in January, Statistics Canada said on Friday, heightening concerns about the drag on the economy posed by the recently muscular Canadian dollar. Canada's trade surplus in January was C$4.0 billion ($3.3 billion), down from C$5.2 billion in December and below expectations for a surplus of C$5.5 billion. It was the smallest trade surplus since the C$4.0 billion recorded in December 2002, and resulted mainly from a 12.5 percent drop in exports of energy products in January. "While there may be substantial offsets on the domestic front, it does appear as if real net exports will remain a drag on GDP growth in the first quarter, and consequently, it is going to be very difficult for the Canadian economy to record growth of more than 2.5 percent," Marc Levesque, TD Securities chief strategist, North America, said in a note. "The Canadian economy may not be crumbling, but it looks as if this report is entirely consistent with the Bank of Canada's stand-pat (interest-rate) policy stance. On the back of the trade data alone, do not expect the (central bank) to move off the sidelines any time soon." Last week, the Bank of Canada held its key overnight lending rate at 2.5 percent, but it signaled rate increases will be necessary in the future. Statscan said that export prices for natural gas and crude petroleum both dropped considerably in January. "The decreases were entirely a result of these lower prices as volumes actually increased," the agency said in its daily bulletin. Exports fell by 1.6 percent from December. But Statscan said that if energy exports were removed from the total, overall exports in fact grew by 0.8 percent in January. Imports rose by 1.9 percent from December against a backdrop of solid growth in consumer demand. Canadian exports to the United States in January fell 2.3 percent to C$29.5 billion, while imports from south of the border inched up 0.3 percent. That put Canada's trade surplus with the United States at C$8.1 billion, down from C$8.8 billion in December.

To: philv who wrote (22625)	3/12/2005 10:19:02 PM
From: The Wharf	Respond to of 81187

I might of picked up a head line somewhere similar to what I read on AG stating he was worried over the trade deficit that was not accurate as his concern is more on the deficit. Canada's Dollar Falls as Trade Surplus Narrows to Two-Year Low March 11 (Bloomberg) -- Canada's dollar declined after the trade surplus narrowed in January to its smallest in more than two years and Canadian manufacturers shed jobs last month. The trade report raised concern that the currency's rise to a 12-year high in November may be making Canadian goods and services too expensive in global markets. Exports exceeded imports by C$4 billion, Statistics Canada reported in Ottawa, the smallest monthly surplus since December 2002. ``Once again you're seeing the impact of the stronger Canadian dollar,'' said Reid Farrill, executive director of foreign exchange at CIBC World Markets in Toronto. ``On the surface, the Canadian jobs number looks healthy, but it's not as good in manufacturing employment.'' Canada's dollar ended a five-day rally dropping to 82.62 U.S. cents at 9:04 a.m. in Toronto, from 83 cents late yesterday, the highest since mid-January. One U.S. dollar buys C$1.2104. About 40 percent of the economy is tied to exports, which become more expensive to consumers abroad when the Canadian dollar surges. The median estimate among economists polled by Bloomberg was for a C$5.5 billion trade surplus. While the economy overall added 26,600 jobs, more than the median estimate of 15,000, manufacturers shed 28,100 jobs, the biggest loss in two years. The Bank of Canada is expected to leave its target rate on hold through September as the economy adapts to the currency's 8 percent rise last year, yields on interest-rate futures show. It left its target overnight interest rate unchanged at 2.50 percent at its December, January and March 1 monetary policy meetings. The bank next meets April 12.