The U.S. rose against its Canadian counterpart on Friday, as downbeat Canadian retail sales data dampened demand for the local currency, while markets an upcoming report on U.S. manufacturing activity.

USD/CAD hit 1.2538 during early U.S. trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.2521, adding 0.21%.

The pair was likely to find support at 1.2359, the low of February 17 and resistance at 1.2624, the high of February 10.

In a report, Statistics Canada said that retail sales dropped 2.0% in December, disappointing expectations for a 0.3% slip, after a 0.4% rise the previous month.