* Overnight rebound in crude shores up Aussie, loonie
* Dollar holds gains vs euro after rising in U.S. debt
yields
By Shinichi Saoshiro
TOKYO, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Commodity currencies such as the
Australian and Canadian dollars on Wednesday held onto gains
made on a rebound in battered crude oil prices, while the dollar
nudged up against the euro on the back of higher U.S. debt
yields.
The Canadian dollar was little changed at $1.3837 CAD=D4
against the dollar, having rallied overnight from a low of
C$1.3941.
The loonie hit an 11-year low of C$1.4003 to the dollar
earlier this month, dogged by weak prices of oil, Canada's main
export, and the dollar's relative strength against other
currencies.
The Australian dollar was steady at $0.7292 AUD=D4 after
rising to $0.7303 overnight, its highest since Dec. 10.
"Towards the end of the year, the U.S. dollar lost momentum
and the market found new appetite for high yield currencies,"
wrote Kathy Lien, managing director at BK Asset Management.
"The Reserve Bank of Australia and New Zealand who cut
interest rates earlier in the year also expressed optimism about
their economies, leading investors to believe that they were
done easing."
Oil prices jumped overnight as colder weather in North
America encouraged buyers, but traders said prices remained
under pressure due to slowing global demand and abundant
supplies from OPEC members. U.S. crude CLc1 dipped early on
Wednesday, handing back some of the previous day's 3 percent
gain.
The dollar index .DXY stood at 98.222, not far from a
one-week peak of 98.413 touched on Tuesday.
The euro was almost flat at $1.0932 EUR= after slipping
0.4 percent overnight. A weak five-year auction and bounce in
oil prices pushed U.S. Treasury yields higher on Tuesday,
favouring the greenback.
The dollar was flat at 120.49 yen JPY= , moving within a
tight 120.63-120.17 range so far this week.
(Editing by Richard Borsuk)