USD/CAD consolidates its gains above 1.3650, eyes on Canadian CPI, US Retail Sales data

• USD/CAD trades flat with mild losses near 1.3680 in Tuesday’s early Asian session. 
• Fed’s Powell said the central bank will not wait until inflation hits 2% to cut interest rates.
• Lower crude oil prices weigh on the commodity-link CAD. 

The USD/CAD pair consolidates its gains around 1.3680 during the early Asian session on Tuesday. The Greenback recovers some lost ground as traders await the Canadian Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data and US Retail Sales on Tuesday for fresh impetus. Also, Federal Reserve’s (Fed) Adriana Kugler is set to speak.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said on Monday that the US has performed remarkably well in recent years, adding that the central bank won't be waiting until inflation reaches the 2% annual target. Meanwhile, Fed Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly did not provide time-based rate cut guidance, but acknowledged significant progress on inflation. 

The odds for Fed rate cuts in September increase after the cooler US inflation data last week, which might weigh on the US Dollar (USD). Traders continue to anticipate a September rate cut followed by further cuts in November and December, bringing the policy rate down to 4.5%-4.75% by year-end.

On the other hand, the Bank of Canada (BoC) Business Outlook Survey on Monday showed that business and consumer expectations for inflation are subdued. “By in large, all of the data or most of the data that is included in that report could be used by Bank of Canada later this month in order to cut rates by a further 25 basis points,” David Doyle, managing director and head of economics at Macquarie Group, said. Meanwhile, the fall of crude oil prices might drag the commodity-linked Canadian Dollar (CAD) lower and cap the pair’s downside as Canada is the major crude oil exporter to the United States.