AFP: Asian markets mostly rose Thursday, with Tokyo lifted by a stronger dollar as investors position for an expected US rate hike and Shanghai extending a recent rally to six sessions.

The euro also got a lift as Greece took another step closer to securing a bailout after lawmakers agreed to more tough austerity measures.

Tokyo rose 0.44%, or 90.28 points, to 20,683.95 and Shanghai jumped 2.43%, or 97.87 points to 4,123.92 while Hong Kong added 0.46%, or 116.23 points, to 25,398.85.

Seoul ended marginally higher, adding 0.34 points to 2,065.07 but Sydney lost 0.43%, or 24.3 points, to close at 5,590.3.

After Wednesday’s losses, the dollar resumed its upward trajectory following a strong batch of housing data that reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will lift rates soon.

Official figures showed sales of existing homes in the US surged in June to their highest level in more than eight years and prices hit a record high.

“It’s not determined yet whether the US rate hikes will be in September or December, but the housing data strengthens the case for a September hike a little,” Mitsushige Akino, executive officer at Ichiyoshi Asset Management Co., told Bloomberg News.

In Tokyo, the dollar bought 124.04 yen against 123.96 yen in New York.

The euro advanced after Greek lawmakers passed legislation on more reforms needed to help unlock a huge international bailout. The bill won 230 votes out of the 298 members of parliament present, following hours of debate.

The single currency fetched $1.0937 and 135.64 yen, against $1.0926 and 135.44 yen.

Gold bounces back above $1,100/oz from 5-year low

Gold bounced back above $1,100 an ounce on Thursday from the previous session’s five-year low, as a retreat in the dollar prompted some investors to take advantage of the price drop to buy back into the market.

Many remained wary towards the precious metal, however, after it posted its deepest one-day loss in nearly two years on Monday, pushing prices through key chart levels and setting it up for further weakness.

Gold has been undermined this year by expectations that the Federal Reserve is on track to raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade, boosting the cost of holding non-yielding bullion and lifting the dollar.

Spot gold was up 0.8% at $1,101.76 an ounce at 0930 GMT, while US gold futures for August delivery were up $9.20 an ounce at $1,100.80.

“Gold is falling out of favour as the Fed is preparing to increase borrowing costs,” AvaTrade’s chief market analyst Naeem Aslam said. “This will remain the major hurdle for any upside move for the precious metal and traders will likely be selling into these rallies.”

“The bounce in gold is nothing but a technical trade, as most major momentum indicators are showing that the recent sell-off is overdone.”

Gold’s decline on Monday was exacerbated by big trading volumes on the Shanghai Gold Exchange after investors dumped more than $500 million of bullion in seconds during early Asian trading hours.

Technical analysts, who study past price patterns to estimate the future direction of trading, say the next target for gold below its Wednesday low near $1,087 an ounce is $1,044, its 2010 low.

Investors are continuing to cut their exposure to gold. Holdings in the biggest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Shares, shrank for a fifth day on Wednesday to their lowest since 2008.

Some demand emerged for physical metal, however. A retreat in the dollar, which fell 0.5% against a currency basket, encouraged some buying in China overnight, dealers said.