TORONTO: The Canadian dollar strengthened to its highest in nearly five months against its US counterpart on Tuesday, as the threat of additional sanctions on Russia boosted oil prices and data showed Canada’s exports climbing to a record high in February.

The loonie was trading 0.5% higher at 1.2420 to the greenback, or 80.52 US cents, after touching its strongest level since Nov. 10 at 1.2418.

Gains for the Canadian dollar came as other commodity-linked currencies moved higher, including a 1.2% jump in the Australian dollar after the Reserve Bank of Australia dropped its pledge to be “patient” on hiking interest rates.

Canada’s exports rose 2.8% in February, driven mostly by energy products, while imports climbed 3.9% from the previous month. It left a slightly narrower trade surplus of C$2.7 billion.

The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, rose 0.6% to $103.87 a barrel as the United States and Europe planned new sanctions to punish Russia over alleged war crimes in Ukraine, raising concerns over tighter global supply.