Dec 9 (Reuters) - Futures tied to Canada's main stock

index rose on Monday, helped by oil and metal prices, while

investors looked ahead to this week's Bank of Canada's interest

rate decision.

December futures on the S&P/TSX index were up 0.36%

at 6:01 a.m. ET (11:01 a.m. GMT).

The Bank of Canada is expected to cut the interest rate by

half a percentage point on Wednesday, marking its second

consecutive rate cut of such magnitude.

Bets for a hefty cut jumped after Friday's data showed a

sharp rise in the unemployment rate, with nearly 80% of

respondents in a Reuters poll predicting a 50 bps cut on Dec. 11

to 3.25%.

In commodities, oil prices jumped after China flagged its

first move toward a loosened monetary policy since 2010.

Gold prices climbed after China's central bank resumed gold

purchases after a six-month pause, while copper hit nearly a

one-month high after the second-largest economy vowed to ramp up

stimulus measures.

The composite index ended higher on Friday,

boosted by technology shares and anticipation of a large

interest rate cut from the BoC.

Across the border, market participants are eyeing

Wednesday's U.S. inflation data to gauge the pace of the Federal

Reserve's rate cuts.

The market bet on an 87% probability of a quarter-point cut

at next week's policy meeting, while expecting about an

89-basis-point cut by the end of next year.

Wall Street futures were subdued on Monday.

In corporate news, Swedish mining group Boliden

agreed to buy Lundin Mining's ( LUNMF ) Neves-Corvo mine in

Portugal and the Zinkgruvan mine in Sweden.

COMMODITIES

Gold: $2,657.47; +0.93%

US crude: $67.92; +1.07%

Brent crude: $71.77; +0.91%

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($1 = 1.4133 Canadian dollars)