USD/CAD taps 1.24 mark for the first time in three-weeks

The greenback continued gaining traction against its Canadian counterpart, lifting the USD/CAD pair to 1.2400 mark for the first time in three-weeks.

The pair traded in positive territory for the eight consecutive session and has now recovered around 340-pips from 28-month lows touched earlier this month, in the aftermath of a surprise BoC rate hike decision.

Persistent greenback buying interest, with the key US Dollar Index hitting fresh monthly tops and inching closer to the 93.00 handle, has been one of the key factors behind the pair's up-move on Tuesday.

This coupled with a modest retracement in crude oil prices, which undermined demand for the commodity-linked currency - Loonie, further collaborated to the pair's up-move through early NA session.

Traders now look ahead of the US economic docket, featuring the release of CB Consumer Confidence Index and New Home Sales data, for some short-term trading impetus. 

The key focus, however, would be on the Fed Chair Janet Yellen's speech, which coupled with BOC Governor Stephen Poloz's speech on Wednesday, would help investors to determine the pair's next leg of directional move.

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Technical levels to watch

A follow through buying interest beyond the 1.2400 handle has the potential to continue lifting the pair towards 50-day SMA hurdle near the 1.2465-70 region ahead of the key 1.25 psychological mark.

On the flip side, 1.2370-65 area now becomes immediate support to defend, which if broken is likely to accelerate the fall towards 1.2325-20 support en-route the 1.2300-1.2290 region.