Gold cuts gains but closes near 6-years high

Gold prices rose during today but reduced their gains in conjunction with dollar's rise against most major currencies and following the Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's comments.

Powell said there were widespread expectations that the central bank would cut interest rates at the July meeting, noting that these are not necessary.

Observers said the comments were a propensity for Powell and his Fed colleagues to stick to the wait-and-see policy.

Powell confirmed that the central bank will continue to monitor economic data in the coming period to assess its monetary policy.

On the other hand, the dollar index (against a number of major currencies) rose by 0.1% to 96.1 points at 18:21 GMT, recording a high of 96.3 points and a low of 95.8 points.

In the session settlement, gold prices rose by less than 0.1% to $1418.70 per ounce, which is the highest closing since last August 2013, the precious metal hit a high of $1442.9 and a low of $1415.1.