By Chris Fournier Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s dollar dropped from the highest level since October versus its U.S. counterpart as crude oil and gold fell and stocks slipped amid an increase in risk aversion, worsening the appeal of commodity-linked currencies. The Canadian currency declined by the most in a week as the U.S. dollar rose against 14 of its 16 most-traded counterparts tracked by Bloomberg. “Equities will determine if the Canadian dollar goes to parity or pulls back,’’ said Michael Leavitt , a Montreal-based institutional-derivatives broker at MF Global Canada Co. “Oil is well off its highs.’’ The Canadian dollar weakened 0.2 percent to C$1.0258 per U.S. dollar at 8:22 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.0234 yesterday, when it touched C$1.0225, the strongest level since Oct. 15. It was poised to gain to 0.4 percent on the week. One Canadian dollar buys 97.48 U.S. cents. “The U.S. dollar is strongly bid across the board today,” Adam Cole, London-based global head of currency strategy at Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s biggest lender, wrote in a note to clients. A “moderate rise in risk aversion” is helping to support the greenback against the euro and Group of 10 currencies, including Canada’s, he wrote. New motor vehicle sales fell 7 percent in November, compared with a 3.5 percent gain the previous month, Statistics Canada is likely to say at 8:30 a.m. in Ottawa, according to the median forecast of 13 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has no plans to resign, government spokesman Christoph Steegmans said, rejecting as “without foundation” market speculation in Asia. Canada’s dollar gained 16 percent last year, and is up 2.6 percent this year on a rebound in prices for commodities such as crude, which account for about half the nation’s export revenue.

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