* Canadian dollar trades near flat against the greenback
* Price of U.S. oil falls 2.2 percent
* Canadian factory sales fall 0.1 percent in October
* Canadian bond prices rise across the yield curve
* 10-year yield hits a nearly one-year low at 2.021 percent
TORONTO, Dec 18 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar steadied against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday, underperforming other G10 currencies as oil prices fell and Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz left the door open to a slower pace of interest rate hikes.
Poloz, speaking to CTV in an interview on Monday, said the pace of interest rate hikes in Canada could be interrupted or sped up depending on economic circumstances. this month, expectations for additional tightening by the Bank of Canada tumbled after Poloz said the central bank would need to assess the impact on the economy of lower oil prices. price of oil, one of Canada's major exports, fell to its lowest since September of last year after reports of swelling inventories and forecasts of record U.S. and Russian output combined with a sharp sell-off in stock markets as the outlook for global growth deteriorated. crude CLc1 prices were down 2.2 percent at $48.78 a barrel.
Canada will offer C$1.6 billion in aid on Tuesday for the struggling energy sector in the western province of Alberta, CTV reported on Monday. factory sales edged down by 0.1 percent in October from September on lower wood product and primary metal manufacturing sales, Statistics Canada said. Analysts had forecast on average a decrease of 0.2 percent.
At 8:37 a.m. EST (1337 GMT), the Canadian dollar CAD=D4 was trading nearly unchanged at 1.3412 to the greenback, or 74.56 U.S. cents. The loonie, which traded in a range of 1.3392 to 1.3420, was the only G10 currency not to gain ground against the U.S. dollar .DXY .
The greenback declined against a basket of major currencies as the recent rout on Wall Street bolstered the view that the Federal Reserve's widely-expected interest rate hike on Wednesday could mark the end of three years of steady rate increases. government bond prices were higher across the yield curve in sympathy with U.S. Treasuries. The 10-year CA10YT=RR rose 7 Canadian cents to yield 2.034 percent.
The 10-year yield touched its lowest intraday since Dec. 29 at 2.021 percent.
Canada's inflation report for November is due on Wednesday.