Reuters

Canada’s economy shrugged off the effects of bad weather to post unexpected growth in April, pushing up the Loonie and boosting the prospects for a rate hike next month.

The Canadian economy unexpectedly grew by 0.1 percent in April, even though bad weather affected major sectors such as retail trade and construction.

The European Union’s chief negotiator urged Prime Minister Theresa May to come up with “workable” proposals for Brexit and overcome “huge and serious” differences.

World stocks enjoyed a strong bounce on Friday with European shares recovering from a turbulent week of selling.

Britain’s services sector gathered steam in April and Q1 GDP growth was revised up, raising hopes of a pick-up after a sluggish start to 2018 that has kept BOE interest rates on hold.

European shares strongly rose at the open, following the lead of Asian markets which rallied from nine-month lows as China eased foreign investment limits.

The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart, supported by a recent increase in oil prices and as investors added to bets for a BOC rate hike next month.

Oil prices steadied on Thursday, with U.S. crude near a 3-1/2-year high, but supply remained tight with investors.

The dollar turned lower on Thursday, giving up early gains as rising inflation in some German regions prompted some traders to buy the euro.

Trade tensions and political concerns again weighed on European shares on Thursday as investors positioned for a potentially divisive European Union summit.