1st LD Writethru: Gold up on weaker dollar, Greek uncertainty

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose on Monday as the U.S. dollar eased against a basket of currencies and continued uncertainty around Greek debt boosted the precious metal.

The most active gold contract for April delivery rose 2.2 U.S. dollars, or 0.19 percent, to settle at 1,166.50 dollars per ounce.

Gold was given a boost as the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against other major currencies, lowered by 0.2 percent to 97.61 at 5:52 p.m. GMT. Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, as a stronger greenback makes dollar-denominated assets including gold more expensive for investors, decreasing the appeal of bullion.

The precious metal was given additional support as eurozone finance ministers on Monday prepared to continue their negotiations on a reform program proposed by Greece in exchange for further bailout. Uncertainty mounted over the results of the meeting, with some believing that little will be decided, and others arguing little time remained to approve the Greek bailout. Spain's finance minister said that Greece would need a bailout package of about 50 billion dollars after its current program ends in June.

Meanwhile, some analysts said that gold will also be buoyed by a strong Asian market where some quantitative signals from China indicated increased demand.

Silver for May delivery fell 3.1 cents, or 0.20 percent, to close at 15.776 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April delivery dropped 10.2 dollars, or 0.88 percent, to close at 1,148.60 dollars per ounce. Endite