Last month, the story in Canada was of political fraud. However, the situation has been neutralized, and a recall election is no longer likely. As a result, Canadian investors have turned to economic statistics to shed light on the future direction of the Canadian dollar (loonie). The recent release of Canadian employment statistics underscores the strength of the vigor of the Canadian economy. Nearly 30,000 new jobs were created last month, the most in over six months. However, note analysts, many of these jobs were created in the public sector, and growth in manufacturing jobs is sluggish. The next major event will be the publication of Ontario’s budget, noteworthy because Ontario is the largest Canadian province. Investors also await the release of new housing starts, and the trade balance with the US, expected to be positive. With the recall election a moot point, currency traders expect the loonie to continue to appreciate against the Dollar. The Canadian Press reports:

"I don’t want to ignore the political backdrop, but I think a lot of that got factored into the currency in April when the Canadian dollar was the weakest major currency in the world," said a senior economist. "And to some extent the currency markets have already moved on and are looking at other things now."

Read More: Investors watching Ontario budget, housing starts