CANADA FX DEBT-Loonie hits 1-week low as household debt burden climbs

By Fergal Smith

* Canadian dollar falls 0.2% against the greenback * For the week, the loonie was on track to fall 0.5% * Canada's household debt-to-income reaches a record 174.1% in Q2 * Canada's 10-year yield touches a six-week high at 1.490% By Fergal Smith TORONTO, Sept 13 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened to a one-week low against its U.S. counterpart on Friday as data showed a rising debt service burden for Canadians that could crimp their spending. The ratio of Canadian household debt-to-income widened to a record 174.1% in the second quarter from a downwardly revised 172.8% in the first quarter, while the debt service ratio rose to 14.9%, data from Statistics Canada showed. "That means there's now a reduced share of disposable income left for households to spend on things other than debt servicing," Krishen Rangasamy, a senior economist at National Bank Financial, said in a note. The Bank of Canada has worried that a pick-up in housing activity, due to lower mortgage rates in recent months, could add to the debt burden of Canadians. The high debt loads and depleted savings of Canadians look set to crimp their spending for as long as decades, economists say. At 9:22 a.m. (1322 GMT), the Canadian dollar was trading 0.2% lower at 1.3233 to the greenback, or 75.57 U.S. cents. The currency touched its weakest intraday level since last Friday at 1.3242. The decline for the loonie came as the greenback got a boost from data showing higher U.S. retail sales. For the week, the loonie was on track to fall 0.5%, pressured by a drop in the price of oil, one of Canada's major exports. Oil steadied on Friday after a three-day losing streak as hints of progress in the U.S.-China trade dispute balanced concerns about slowing global economies and oil demand. U.S. crude oil futures were up 0.1% at $55.13 a barrel. Canadian government bond prices were lower across the yield curve in sympathy with U.S. Treasuries. The two-year fell 3.5 Canadian cents to yield 1.625% and the 10-year was down 18 Canadian cents to yield 1.468%. The 10-year yield touched its highest intraday level since Aug. 1 at 1.490%. (Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editingnby Steve Orlofsky)