NEW YORK, March 17: US gold futures held onto healthy gains into Friday's close, lifted to a one-week high by a slumping dollar that was undermined when US economic data suggested little chance the Federal Reserve would trim US interest rates any time soon, traders said.

It rallied this morning with the weaker US dollar off of (US) economic data. But it hit resistance at the $655 area,” said one New York gold dealer. Overall, it was pretty quiet and still rangebound. We're still looking at a range between $635 and $655 (an ounce). Benchmark gold futures for April delivery on the

COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange remained strong, holding $6.80 gains at $653.90 an ounce. It traded in a band between $651.0 and $656.50 an ounce, the highest since March 9.

The fact that it hit a high today is important. It shows people are starting to regain confidence again after the recent drop. It's important that we're finishing the week on a positive note and we're continuing the bull run of the past six months, said one New York dealer.—Reuters