Dollar Mostly Higher; Gold Advances

The dollar finished higher against most major currencies except the Japanese yen on Thursday, driven by technical buying and market sentiment favoring the dollar.

Gold prices gained. At the Republic National Bank in New York, gold bullion was quoted at $342 an ounce as of 4 p.m. EDT, up $3 from Wednesday’s bid.

Currency dealers said the rise in the dollar’s value over the past few days occurred as investors, who had previously sold dollars, bought them back on the assumption that the dollar would continue to strengthen.

Interest in buying dollars was renewed by a U.S. government report Tuesday that the gross national product, the broad gauge of economic health, grew at a 3.7% annual rate in the first three months of the year, not at the slower 3.2% pace as the Commerce Department had previously estimated.

Some dealers said market sentiment has changed from bearish to bullish toward the dollar.