Canadian Dollar Tumbles

US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said his agency will impose anti-subsidy tariffs averaging around 20.00% on softwood lumber imports from Canada. Speaking to Reuters, Ross said the proposed duties would affect $5 billion worth of lumber imports from the country.

US competitors have been arguing that Canadian timber producers, who use public lands, receive subsidies from their government, which is unavailable to US growers, most of whom use private land. The US imported a total of $325 billion in goods and services from Canada in 2015, according to Commerce Department data. USDCAD has been rallying since the announcement on greater than average volumes after breaking above the strong resistance around 1.3530. The pair was last seen trending around 1.3560, marking the highest point since December 28.

British factories were hit by a dip in orders during April according to a leading survey, suggesting the shine may be coming off a sector that was riding high on the falling value of the pound. The Confederation of British Industry's monthly balance of factory output fell to 4 in April from 8 in March, missing the consensus forecast of 5.

The current month’s reading was the weakest since December and was coupled with a loss in business confidence alongside a drop in export orders. Economists noted that the challenges facing the manufacturing sector are mounting and are likely to intensify through summer. The CBI survey of nearly 400 factories was conducted before UK Prime Minister Theresa May announced her decision to hold national election on June 8^th. GBPUSD ahs been stuck within a sideways range since the past one week, and was last trading around 1.27800.