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SANTIAGO, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Chile's peso CLP=CL rose 1.76 percent on Monday to a 15-month high on gains in global markets and an influx of U.S. dollars as carry trades unraveled, traders said.

The peso ended at 512.20/512.70 per dollar, compared to Friday's close of 521.20/521.70. The currency also benefited from wider dollar weakness against major currencies.

It was the peso's highest close since August 2008. The currency has surged more than 25 percent so far this year, after sliding 22.3 percent in 2008.

"The unraveling of carry trades means that capital taken out of the country in previous months is now starting to come back into the market, which is generating excess dollar liquidity," said one local foreign exchange dealer.

"There is an abundant offer of dollars, and that is mainly due to a very positive scenario abroad, gains on stock markets, commodity prices and a weaker dollar," he added.

Carry trades involve investors borrowing in countries where financing costs are cheap, such as Chile, to invest in higher-yielding currencies. The unwinding of such positions have dominated the local market in recent sessions, boosting the peso.

Chile's low-interest currency has been used to make bets against such higher-interest currencies such as the Brazilian real BRL=, traders said.

The Chilean peso has gained 6.4 percent since Brazil's Oct. 20 introduction of a 2 percent tax on investment in-flows has prompted unwinding of some carry trades involving the Chilean peso. (Reporting by Froilan Romero, writing by Aaron Nelsen, Editing by Andrew Hay)