Dollar Higher Despite Inverventions by Central Banks
The dollar shook off efforts by central banks to curb its rise and closed mostly higher today, reflecting traders' optimism that the U.S. currency would remain strong.</br></br>Gold prices rose in domestic trading after falling overseas. Republic National Bank of New York quoted a bid of $395 for a troy ounce of gold as of 4 p.m., up $1.25 from late Friday's bid of $393.75.</br></br>At a weekend meeting in Berlin, finance ministers of the seven industrial nations known as the Group of Seven reaffirmed their intention to keep currency rates stable, leaving deliberately vague their views about whether it could fluctuate within a secret range.</br></br>But Jack Barbanel, a vice president with Gruntal & Co. Inc., said the meeting did not seem to influence the dollar's direction today.</br></br>Investors were reacting to positive factors, including a recent narrowing of the U.S. trade deficit and the conservative attitude of the Federal Reserve toward interest rates, Barbanel said.