At Interchange Financial, we pride ourselves on making international money transfers as easy and stress-free as possible. We understand that sending money to friends, family, or business partners overseas can be a daunting task, but our goal is to simplify the process for you.
Here’s how you can send money internationally with Interchange Financial.
The Canadian dollar has gained another half cent against the US dollar overnight and has now risen by 1.5 cents since yesterday’s low. This surge in the Canadian dollar’s value occurred after the release of higher-than-expected Canadian inflation numbers this morning. In April, inflation rose by 0.7%, surpassing the 0.4% anticipated by analysts. Additionally, on an annualized basis, Canadian inflation increased by 4.4% compared to the expected 4.1%. This has created a more uncertain path forward for the Bank of Canada.
Markets were generally lower on Thursday as investors grappled with understanding the implications of yesterday’s inflation numbers, which came in slightly lower than expected at 4.9% instead of 5%. The ongoing crisis in the US regional banking sector also weighed heavily on the markets, with another US regional bank facing pressure. PacWest’s shares plunged over 20% today after reporting larger than expected deposit outflows. These factors caused nervousness among investors, leading them to seek safe haven currencies like the US dollar. Consequently, the US dollar traded higher against most currencies, including the Canadian dollar. The Canadian dollar dropped by ¾ of a penny this morning and has now lost over a full penny since Monday’s near one-month high.
This morning’s Consumer Price Index Report showed that US inflation cooled to 4.9% in April, slightly lower than the expected 5%. The good news is that this marks the 10th consecutive decline, but the bad news is that inflation remains stubbornly high and significantly far from the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%.
Disappointing Chinese import volumes, which are seen as a barometer for global economic strength, and US Treasury Secretary Yellen’s comments about the potential catastrophic global economic impact of not resolving the US government’s debt ceiling, drove markets lower yesterday and this morning.
The Canadian dollar continued to edge higher overnight and into today, hitting a two-week high against the US dollar. The Canadian dollar gained momentum after stronger-than-expected employment data and stabilizing oil prices, which had fallen by more than 15% over the last three weeks.
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Bank raised US interest rates to a target range of between 5 – 5.25%. This was the 10th consecutive meeting in which the Fed announced an increase in interest rates, and all indications are that it will be the last one. While the Fed chairman confirmed that there is no clear level at which interest rates are restrictive enough, by removing wording suggesting that more interest rate hikes are necessary from their accompanying statement, the Fed is signaling that it is done increasing rates.
This week, there has been no shortage of negative economic news and renewed worries about the stability of the US regional banking sector, primarily due to the First Republic Bank, which looks like it will be taken over by regulators. In the good old days of a predictable FX market, this would have led to a safe-haven rally for the US dollar, causing the Canadian dollar to drop in value.
The Canadian dollar to US dollar exchange rate remained relatively stable overnight and into this morning. The USD/CAD pair has been hovering at one-month lows (CAD highs) and moving sideways throughout much of this week, with no sustained breaks above 1.3645. Generally, FX markets have been somewhat directionless due to mixed economic news.
If you’re Canadian and you’ve sent money to someone else in Canada before, you’ve likely used Interac e-Transfer. But did you know that you can use Interac e-Transfer to send money to the US too? That’s right, and it couldn’t be easier!
Here’s how to get started:
