LONDONSYDNEY, Oct 2 Reuters The dollar held on to its biggest gains in a week on Wednesday after an Iranian missile attack on Israel drove the buying of safe haven assets as investors fretted about the widening of conflict in the Middle East.

It also jumped against the yen as Japanese officials, including new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, talked down the chances of another Bank of Japan rate hike.

The euro was little changed against the dollar at 1.1069, following its largest drop in nearly four months on Tuesday at 0.6.

The U.S. dollar index , which tracks the currency against a basket of peers, was also steady at 101.32 after rising 0.5 on Tuesday.

Iran said on Wednesday its missile attack on Israel, its biggest military assault on the Jewish state, was over, barring further provocation, while Israel and the United States said they would retaliate against Tehran.

Israel said Iran fired more than 180 ballistic missiles and Iran39;s Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack was retaliation for Israeli killings of militant leaders and aggression in Lebanon against the Iranbacked armed movement Hezbollah.

The markets39; response to the Middle East tensions thus far has centred on oil prices.

The oil price does appear to be where the market is taking its steer from but even now Brent crude oil is still at 75 a barrel, and that39;s far lower than what it was before the summer, Jane Foley, head of FX strategy at Rabobank, said.

It is still obviously a primary source…