LONDON, Sept 4: Silver rose to its highest in more than three months and gold was firmer on a weaker dollar but trade was expected to be restrained by a US public holiday, dealers said.

Silver has rebounded more than 30 per cent since falling to a four-month low of $9.38 an ounce in mid-June, and dealers said good demand for a silver exchange-traded fund launched on the American Stock Exchange in late April was spurring buying.

New York is closed and the market is thin. Silver is flirting with $13, but because the volume is so thin you can expect the unexpected, a trader said.

Precious metals were expected to watch currencies for direction, and some dealers expected demand for gold from jewellers to pick up later this year.

Norman said the second half of a year traditionally saw greater demand for physical metals, which usually supported spot market prices.

There are other supportive factors -- geopolitics and the ending of the rising US interest rate cycle, he said. The euro was firmer against the dollar at $1.2860.

But we are pretty bearish, looking for gold to break below $620 if the dollar holds and then $607 and $600 later this week. Celaya said physical demand from Asia was unlikely to emerge until prices neared $585.

Platinum rose to $1,244/1,249 from $1,242/1,247. Palladium rose to $344/349 from $342/347.—Reutersas