* C$ at C$1.0190 vs US$, or 98.14 U.S. cents
* Traders await commentary from Fed, Bank of Canada
By Alastair Sharp
TORONTO, June 19 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar was
slightly stronger against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday
ahead of appearances by the heads of both countries' central
banks.
Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz will make his first
public address since he testified June 6 in the House of
Commons, days after taking office. In the afternoon speech, he
may provide hints as to whether he will maintain the rate-hiking
bias of his predecessor.
Of more global significance, the U.S. Federal Reserve will
at roughly the same time provide an update on its monetary
policy outlook, including a possible timetable for slowing its
asset-buying program.
"The Fed statement, everyone is waiting for it. Poor Mr.
Poloz is going to be well overshadowed in his first public
speaking engagement," said John Curran, senior vice president at
CanadianForex.
"But I'm not looking for the Bank of Canada governor to be
too much out of the box and with the Fed, I don't expect a great
deal of change there," he said.
Poloz's speech, before a business conference in Ontario, is
scheduled for 12:40 p.m. (1640 GMT).
In Washington, the policy-setting Federal Open Market
Committee will announce its decision at 2 p.m. (1800 GMT). Fed
Chairman Ben Bernanke will hold a news conference 30 minutes
later
The Fed's rate setters are expected to leave policy
ultra-loose following the central bank's monthly meeting but may
hint they will start scaling back its bond buying later this
year if the U.S. labor market continues to improve.
At 8:52 a.m. (1252 GMT) the Canadian dollar was
trading at C$1.0190 to the greenback, or 98.14 U.S. cents,
compared with C$1.0210, or 97.94 U.S. cents, at Tuesday's North
American close.
Curran said notwithstanding any major surprises from the
central banks, the Canadian dollar would likely trade between
C$1.0170 and C$1.0260 on the day.
The price of Canadian government debt was higher across the
curve, with the two-year bond up 2 Canadian cents to
yield 1.109 percent, while the benchmark 10-year bond
rose 16 Canadian cents to yield 2.143 percent.