The Canadian dollar was little changed against its US counterpart on Monday as investors weighed a series of arrests of prominent Saudi Arabians and awaited a speech on Tuesday from Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz. Prices of oil, one of Canada's major exports, reached their highest since July 2015 as Saudi Arabia's crown prince cemented his power over the weekend through an anti-corruption crackdown.
The news stirred concerns of Middle Eastern money pulling out of global financial markets. Poloz will discuss central banks' ability to understand inflation, which can help guide expectations for further interest rate hikes. Canada's central bank is expected to hold rates steady in December after hiking twice this year. But data on Friday showing unexpected strength in the nation's job market has supported expectations for further increases next year.
At 9:05 am ET (1405 GMT), the Canadian dollar was nearly flat at C$1.2766 to the greenback, or 78.33 US cents. The currency traded in a narrow range of C$1.2742 to C$1.2777. On Friday, it touched its strongest in nine days at C$1.2716. Still, speculators have cut bullish bets on the loonie, data from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Reuters calculations showed on Friday.