By Chris Fournier Nov. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s dollar strengthened as U.S. stock futures rose and a government showed the nation’s trade deficit narrowed in September more than forecast. The Canadian currency headed for a second straight weekly gain against its U.S. counterpart amid speculation governments will leave stimulus measures in place to support the economic recovery, boosting appetite for higher-yielding assets such as currencies tied to growth. “It’s still the global themes driving the Canadian dollar,’’ said Matthew Strauss, a senior currency strategist in Toronto at Royal Bank of Canada, the nation’s largest lender. “There’s a slight increase in risk appetite after yesterday’s sell-off.” Canada’s dollar appreciated 0.5 percent to C$1.0501 per U.S. dollar at 8:42 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.0557 yesterday, when it touched C$1.0418, the strongest level in three weeks, before depreciating 1 percent. The currency is poised for a weekly advance of 2.4 percent. One Canadian dollar buys 95.23 U.S. cents. The nation’s trade deficit narrowed in September to its lowest level in three months on rising exports of automobiles and metals, Statistics Canada said today in Ottawa. The gap was C$927 million ($881 million), compared with a revised C$1.99 billion in August. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected a deficit of C$1.8 billion, the median of 20 estimates. The U.S. trade deficit widened in September by the most in a decade, a Commerce Department report today showed, reflecting rising demand for imported oil and automobiles as the economy rebounded from the worst recession since the 1930s. The gap grew a larger-than-anticipated 18 percent to $36.5 billion, the highest level since January, from a revised $30.8 billion in August, the department said. The Canadian dollar is up 3.4 percent this month for the third-best performance against the greenback among the 16 most- actively traded currencies tracked by Bloomberg. The U.S. dollar declined against all major counterparts in November.

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