Loonie near par

The Canadian dollar rose 1.73 cents to close at 99.86 cents US yesterday as the American dollar’s global weakness intensified and the loonie benefited from rising commodity prices.
The gain came after Statistics Canada suggested Canadian manufactur­ers continue to show surprising resilience in the face of the U.S. economic slump.
The euro, meanwhile, hit another record against the greenback, trading at $1.5968 US, topping the previous record of $1.5912 set last Thursday.
The American dollar also weakened against the British pound and the Japanese yen.
Sentiment toward the loonie was bolstered as crude oil futures made their first foray past $115 US yesterday, propelled to a new record by concerns about how much gas will be available during the peak summer months.
Also boosting the loonie was word Saskatchewan potash producers have won a $400-a-tonne price increase from China’s biggest fertilizer distributor, Sinofert Holdings.