* C$ at C$1.0381, or 96.33 U.S. cents
* Benefits from weaker U.S. dollar
* Narrower trade deficit has little impact
* Canada bond prices lower
TORONTO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar rose slightly
from a two-week low on Tuesday, boosted by the U.S. dollar's
weakness versus the euro and yen, as traders looked ahead to key
jobs data due at the end of the week.
A report showing Canada's trade deficit narrowed a bit more
than expected in June was mirrored by a similarly strong U.S
trade report and had little impact on the currency pair.
"We're still being driven so much by U.S. news rather than
Canadian news, particularly as the trade figures are pretty
close to expectations. (The data) didn't really give us much
direction," said Adam Cole, global head of FX strategy at RBC
Capital Markets in London.
"We're waiting for Friday's employment numbers to really
have any independent direction."
At 9:49 a.m. EDT (1338 GMT), the Canadian dollar
was at C$1.0381 versus the U.S. dollar, or 96.33 U.S. cents, up
from Friday's North American session close of C$1.0390 versus
the U.S. dollar, or 96.25 U.S. cents.
The loonie, as the currency is known, ended at C$1.0359, or
96.53 U.S. cents, on Monday, when Canadian trading desks were
closed for a national holiday. Early in Monday's session, the
Canadian dollar hit a two-week low of C$1.0403, or 96.13 U.S.
cents.
The loonie has generally been on the defensive versus the
greenback over the past year, most recently driven by signs the
U.S. Federal Reserve will trim back stimulus.
On Tuesday, the U.S. dollar was on the defensive due in part
to news of a surge in factory output in Britain and Germany,
which gave life to the euro.
Economists expect that data due on Friday will show Canadian
employment growth was little changed in July for the second
straight month, likely firming expectations that the Bank of
Canada will hold interest rates steady until well into 2014.
Government bond prices were weaker across the maturity
curve. The two-year bond was down 3 Canadian cents to
yield 1.170 percent, while the benchmark 10-year bond
dropped 47 Canadian cents to yield 2.545 percent.