The loonie was up 0.77 to 91.79 U.S. cents at mid-afternoon, down from an earlier high of 91.94 U.S. cents. It has not been that level since October 1977.

    The latest boost to the loonie came after Statistics Canada said Friday morning that retail sales surged 1.9 percent in March to an estimated 34 billion Canadian dollars (about 30.9 billion U.S. dollars), following two relatively flat months.

    The strong retail sales report further fueled speculations that the Bank of Canada may raise interest rates, which have remained at 4.25 percent since last May, as early as this summer.

    On Thursday, the monthly inflation figures showed the core rate of inflation -- which excludes the most volatile items -- rose to 2.5 percent last month. That is the highest in more than four years.

    Other reasons for the loonie's strength include persistently high commodity prices, the spate of takeovers of Canadian companies by foreign groups, and an American dollar that is weakening against many foreign currencies.

    Some analysts expect the Canadian dollar could eventually hit par or even surpass the U.S. dollar.