* Canadian dollar declines 0.4% against the greenback
* Price of U.S. oil falls 3.2%
* Canadian wholesale trade rises 1.4% in March
* Bond prices rise across the yield curve
By Fergal Smith
TORONTO, May 23 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, as investor worries about the trade war between the United States and China overshadowed domestic data showing a stronger-than-expected gain for wholesale trade.
At 9:15 a.m. (1315 GMT), the Canadian dollar CAD=D4 was trading 0.4% lower at 1.3486 to the greenback, or 74.15 U.S. cents. The currency touched its weakest level since last Friday at 1.3493.
Canadian wholesale trade increased by 1.4% in March from February, Statistics Canada said, beating analysts estimates of a 0.9% increase. data included a rise in trade volumes of 1%. That was "strong" and could boost prospects for next week's gross domestic product data, said Andrew Grantham, a senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets, in a note.
Meanwhile, global stocks fell for a second straight day after data showing a recovery in euro zone business activity was weaker than expected this month and on fears that the U.S.-China trade war could spiral into a technology cold war between the two countries. exports many commodities, including oil, and runs a current account deficit, so its economy could be hurt by a slowdown in the global flow of capital or trade.
Oil prices extended falls from the previous session amid surging U.S. crude inventories as low refinery runs and ongoing trade tensions weighed on the demand outlook. U.S. crude oil futures CLc1 were down 3.2% at $59.44 a barrel. government bond prices were higher across the yield curve in sympathy with U.S. Treasuries. The two-year CA2YT=RR rose 5.5 Canadian cents to yield 1.633% and the 10-year CA10YT=RR was up 31 Canadian cents to yield 1.682%.