UPDATE 1-Canada's Dodge does not intend to leave BoC early

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OTTAWA, April 26 (Reuters) - Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge said on Thursday he does not intend to leave as head of the central bank before his seven-year term expires on Jan. 31, 2008.

The bank said on Wednesday that Dodge, 63, will not seek a second term and will step down when his mandate ends.

The board of the central bank will start the selection process for his replacement in June, Dodge said after delivering the bank's semi-annual Monetary Policy Report. The bank said it aims to choose his successor by this fall.

"I don't intend to leave before the 31st of January," he said. "I'm going to take six or seven months to try to figure out what I want to do when I grow up."

Dodge said he was merely following his predecessor's example in announcing his plans early and wanted to give the bank time to search for a new governor. He declined to comment on potential successors.

Names touted as possible candidates include Senior Deputy Governor Paul Jenkins, Deputy Governor Tiff Macklem and Mark Carney, the senior associate deputy minister at the Finance Department and a former central bank deputy governor.

Jenkins, speaking at the same news conference on Thursday, declined to say whether he would seek the top position, saying there was a process in place to select a new governor.

Malcolm Knight, a former senior deputy governor of the Bank of Canada who lost out to Dodge in 2001 and now heads the Bank for International Settlements, might also be a candidate.

"Think about it," Dodge urged potential candidates. "It's a tremendous position."