(Adds comment, details, closing figures)
* Canadian dollar at C$1.1236 or 89.00 U.S. cents
* Bond prices higher across the maturity curve
By Solarina Ho
TORONTO, Nov 26 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar strengthened
against the greenback on Wednesday despite lower oil prices and
uncertainty ahead of looming events such as Thursday's OPEC
meeting and Friday's release of Canadian gross domestic product
figures.
The currency, which often follows movements in oil prices,
rose even though the price of crude fell on expectations that
OPEC (the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)
members will not take drastic action to tighten the market when
they gather for a highly anticipated meeting in Vienna.
U.S. crude oil futures settled down 40 cents at
$73.69.
Ken Wills, a currency strategist and broker at CanadianForex
in Toronto, said the Canadian currency's link with oil prices
may have loosened.
"That oil correlation seems to have let off a little bit,"
he said, noting there has been increasing talk among Canadian
oil sands producers that efficiencies are helping lower how much
a barrel of crude must cost for them to stay profitable.
"They're down to, some are saying $40, some are saying $65 a
barrel. I think that has unhinged things a little bit for
Canada," he said.
The Canadian dollar closed Wednesday's session at
C$1.1236 to the greenback, or 89.00 U.S. cents, compared with
Tuesday's finish of C$1.1253, or 88.87 U.S. cents.
Canadian third quarter GDP figures are due on Friday.
Statistics Canada has reported some robust economic data for the
month of September, and economists forecast GDP growth of 2.1
percent for the quarter at an annualized rate.
An extremely thin market is expected for the rest of the
week due to the U.S. Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday, which
could result in more market volatility, analysts said. Wills
said the volatility could spur the currency to challenge the
C$1.1225 level or even the C$1.1185.
"I think the biggest set-up for a sharp move would be what
if the (GDP) data disappoints," said Greg Anderson, global head
of foreign exchange strategy at BMO Capital Markets in New York.
Canadian government bond prices were higher across the
maturity curve, with the two-year adding half a
Canadian cent to yield 1.041 percent and the benchmark 10-year
climbing 12 Canadian cents to yield 1.933 percent.
(Editing by Peter Galloway)