Dollar Moves Up in U.S.; Gold Down Broadly

The dollar moved higher Wednesday in foreign exchange trading in the United States after a mixed performance earlier in Europe.

The dollar’s mixed showing came after the government reported a decline in U.S. industrial production in April and a major American bank cut its prime lending rate to the lowest level in 6 1/2 years.

“The Europeans were unwilling to deal too aggressively because of the holiday and that spilled over to New York where traders showed some reluctance as well,” said James T. McGroarty, who tracks the foreign exchange markets for Discount Corp. in New York.

Another factor pressuring the dollar, McGroarty said, was the Senate passage of a resolution urging the government to intervene in foreign-exchange markets to lower the value of the U.S. dollar.

He said the Federal Reserve’s report that industrial production fell 0.2% in April “weighed on the dollar on the lower side.”