TORONTO — The loonie was up nearly half a cent after Statistics Canada reported inflation was higher than expected in March.

The Canadian dollar traded at 82.52 cents US, 0.42 of a U.S. cent from Thursday’s close.

Earlier, Statistics Canada said the national inflation rate was 1.2 per cent in March and core inflation was 2.2 per cent, both higher than estimates.

The Dow Jones industrial futures were down 132 points at 17,909, the Nasdaq futures fell 33.50 points to 4,381, and the S&P 500 futures declined 11.90 points to 2,088.90.

On the commodity markets, the May crude contract was down 49 cents at US$56.22 a barrel and the June gold contract rose $7.20 to US$1,205.20 an ounce ahead of the TSX open.

The S&P/TSX composite closed Thursday at 15,386.77, after a 64-point decline.