CANADA FX DEBT-C$ rises to near 6-wk high, bonds edge up

 *C$ rises to 97.70 U.S. cents

 *Hit 6-wk high Monday when most Canada markets were closed

 *Bond prices edge up with Treasuries

 TORONTO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar was firm
near a six-week high against a declining U.S. currency on
Tuesday, helped by rising oil prices but held back by growth
concerns in the United States, Canada's biggest trading
partner.

 At 9:30 a.m. (1330 GMT), the Canadian dollar CAD=D4 was
at C$1.0235 to the U.S. dollar, or 97.70 U.S. cents, up from
C$1.0283 to the U.S. dollar, or 97.25 U.S. cents, at Friday's
close.

 Most Canadian financial markets were closed on Monday for a
holiday, but the Canadian dollar shot as high as C$1.0204 to
the U.S. dollar, or 98 U.S. cents, its highest level since June
22.

 "It's been somewhat subdued since," said Shane Enright,
executive director, foreign exchange sales, at CIBC World
Markets.

 "The Canadian dollar probably is struggling to keep up with
some of the gains you've seen in other currencies against the
U.S. just simply because part of the U.S. dollar weakness is
based on the fact that growth prospects in the States seem to
be diminishing."

 Canada's economy is tied tight to the United States, which
absorbs about three-quarters of its exports. Recent data has
pointed to weaker U.S. growth.

 Negative sentiment for the U.S. currency mounted after U.S.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Monday that it
has yet to recover fully and monetary policy must remain
accommodative. [ID:nN02276865]

 Canadian government bond prices edged up with U.S.
Treasuries as investors mulled the Fed chairman's comments, and
as disappointing corporate results weakened U.S. equity
markets.

The Canadian two-year bond CA2YT=RR climbed 6 Canadian
cents to yield 1.429 percent, while the 10-year bond
CA10YT=RR added 10 Canadian cents to yield 3.101 percent.

 Jobs reports for July from Canada and the United States on
Friday are the main event market event this week and could go a
long way in determining views on recovery in the two
countries.

 The first look at Canada's third-quarter jobs data is
expected to yield a modest gain of 15,000 jobs after impressive
job creation in the first half of the year brought the labor
market close to its pre-recession employment peak. The
unemployment rate is expected to remain steady at 7.9 percent.
[ID:nN30270191]
 (Reporting by Ka Yan Ng; editing by Peter Galloway)