Canada’s dollar strengthened to the highest level since June as crude oil traded near highs and economists estimated a report this week will show the nation added jobs for a seventh straight month, fueling risk demand. The currency, which tends to track commodity prices such as crude oil, performed third-best today among its 16 most-traded counterparts. Australia’s dollar, another so-called commodity currency, rose the second most after the country reported its trade surplus unexpectedly increased to a record due to demand from China. “Oil prices are rebounding from earlier lows and the Australian data helps offset some of the news out of the U.S.,” David Watt, senior currency strategist in Toronto at Royal Bank of Canada, the nation’s biggest bank, said in an e-mail. “Investors are still well into risk-seeking territory, which makes them more apt to focus on bullish risk factors.” The Canadian currency, nicknamed the loonie, rose as much as 0.4 percent to C$1.0197 per U.S. dollar, the most since June 22, before changing hands at C$1.0220 at 10:16 a.m. in Toronto. It ended yesterday at C$1.0235. One Canadian dollar buys 97.85 U.S. cents. Crude for September delivery fell 32 cents to $82.20 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It reached $82.85 a barrel earlier today, the highest since May. Crude is Canada’s largest export. The Standard & Poors 500 index gained 0.2 percent in New York. Jobs Growth Canadian employers added 12,500 jobs to payrolls last month, after a 93,200 gain in June, according to the median of 22 estimates in a Bloomberg survey. The nation’s unemployment rate held steady at 7.9 percent, the survey shows. The report will be released Aug. 6. The loonie underperformed currency peers during the past month, as U.S. economic data that trailed expectations called into question the North American recovery. Canada’s dollar is up 4 percent since July 2, lagging behind 11 of the 16 majors. The greenback is down against all 16. Canada ships about three quarters of its exports to the U.S. “The Canadian dollar remains an underperformer on many cross rates,” RBC’s Watt said. “I remain very wary of the foundations of the risk rally.” Reduced expectations for economic growth have crimped bond yields. Canada’s 10-year note rose one basis points, or 0.01 percentage point, to 3.11 percent after falling yesterday by as much as six basis points to 3.06 percent, the lowest level since May 2009. The 3.5 percent security maturing in June 2020 dropped 10 cents today to C$103.31. Bond Sale Canada will auction C$3.2 billion of 2.5 percent bonds maturing in September 2013 later today, with results available on the central bank’s website shortly after noon. The previous auction of three-year bonds on June 16 drew an average yield of 2.39 percent and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.43 times, according to central bank data. Canada’s government bonds have made investors 0.14 percent this month, according to a Merrill Lynch & Co. index.

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