* Canadian dollar hits nine-month highs, Aussie near 2016
peak
* Oil prices extend gains on production freeze hope
* China trade data next in focus
By Ian Chua
SYDNEY, April 13 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar hovered
just under a nine-month peak early on Wednesday, having rallied
along with other commodity currencies on the back of solid gains
in oil prices.
With hopes of a production freeze among top producers Russia
and Saudi Arabia back in play, global oil prices climbed to
four-month highs overnight.
That in turn helped underpin risk appetite, which saw the
safe-haven yen recoil from recent highs against the greenback
and euro.
Canada's loonie stood at C$1.2769 per USD CAD=D4 , not far
from the overnight high of C$1.2750 - a level last seen in July.
Also helping the currency, the Bank of Canada is widely
expected to hold interest rates at 0.5 percent following its
meeting on Wednesday. After a run of better-than-expected
economic data at the start of the year, the central bank is also
likely to raise its growth forecasts.
Other commodity currencies were firmer with the Australian
dollar at $0.7681 AUD=D4 , nearing its 2016 peak of $0.7723 set
a few weeks ago.
In contrast, the dollar, euro and yen were pretty subdued,
albeit with the Japanese currency slightly weaker.
The greenback was back above 108.50 yen JPY= , having
climbed from a near 18-month trough around 107.63 set on Monday.
The euro rose to 123.60 yen EURJPY=R , putting further distance
from a three-year low of 122.085 set last month.
Against the dollar, the euro eased to $1.1384 EUR= after
turning around from a six-month peak of $1.1465. That helped the
dollar index .DXY climb back above 94.000, from a near
eight-month low of 93.627.
"Given that the market is quite short USD against the EUR
and JPY, and with U.S. inflation data also likely to be on the
firm side on Thursday, we expect the USD's corrective recovery
against the core majors to extend a little further this week,"
analysts at BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) wrote in a note to clients.
Whether risk sentiment will hold up could depend on China
trade data due later in the day. Renewed worries about the
strength of the world's second biggest economy might see the
safe-haven yen bounce back. ECONCN