By Chris Fournier Dec. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s dollar strengthened for a second day against its U.S. counterpart as commodities such as crude oil and copper rose and global stocks gained, burnishing the appeal of currencies linked to economic growth. The Canadian currency touched the strongest level versus the euro in more than a year and was the biggest winner against the greenback among the 16 most-traded currencies tracked by Bloomberg. Retail sales increased in October, the eighth gain in 10 months, Statistics Canada said today. “Thin market conditions and a move in euro-Canada through the calendar low is creating more of a buying spree for the Canadian dollar,” said Jack Spitz, managing director of foreign exchange at National Bank of Canada in Toronto. “That’s taken the loonie higher across the board.” The Canadian currency, nicknamed the loonie for the image of the waterfowl on the C$1 coin, appreciated 0.6 percent to C$1.0598 per U.S. dollar at 11:13 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.0664 on Dec. 18. Against the euro, the currency touched C$1.5120, the strongest level since November 2008, from C$1.5290 on Dec. 18. One Canadian dollar buys 94.36 U.S. cents. Government bonds fell, pushing the yield on Canada’s benchmark 10-year security up six basis points, or 0.06 percentage point, to 3.47 percent, the highest level in more than a month. The price of the 3.75 percent bond due in June 2019 dropped 51 cents to C$102.25. ‘Confined’ to Range Canada’s currency is the third-best performing major currency this month, after Mexico’s peso and the greenback. The loonie has gained 15 percent this year and will appreciate to C$1.03 by the end of March, according to the median forecast of 37 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. “Much of the price action for the next week or so is going to be a function of year positioning and book squaring,” Jonathan Gencher, Toronto-based director of foreign-exchange sales at Bank of Montreal, Canada’s fourth-largest lender, wrote in a note to clients. The U.S. dollar-Canadian dollar exchange rate “still looks to be confined to a C$1.04 to C$1.08 range.” October retail sales rose 0.8 percent from the previous month to C$35.3 billion ($33.3 billion), led by cars and clothing stores, the statistics agency said in Ottawa, matching the median estimate of 19 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The MSCI World Index, a gauge of equities in 23 developed nations, gained 1.1 percent, and the Standard & Poor’s 500, a benchmark of U.S. stocks, climbed 1.2 percent. “Equities are helping the Canadian dollar,” said Michael Leavitt, a Montreal-based institutional-derivatives broker at MF Global Canada Co. “Retail sales today may also give the Canadian dollar a boost.” Crude oil for January delivery was at $74.10 a barrel, up 1 percent, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude is Canada’s biggest export. To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Montreal at cfournier3@bloomberg.net

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