NEW YORK: The dollar held its earlier gains versus a basket of currencies on Tuesday as data showed US retail sales grew more than expected in June, soothing concerns about consumer spending slowing in the third quarter.

At 8:44 a.m. (1244 GMT), an index that tracks the greenback versus six other currencies was up 0.37% at 97.291 after touching 97.332 earlier, which was its highest in four sessions.