NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar fell broadly against major currencies on Friday, touching a three-year low against the yen after monetary easing by Japan's central bank.

Wall Street stocks ended mixed in thin trading as many traders took the day off, while Treasuries gained in a short session ahead of Monday's U.S. Columbus Day holiday.

Oil prices surged, gaining nearly a dollar per barrel and touching nine-week highs amid dealer worries over thin petroleum stocks ahead of winter.

Currency traders perceived the Bank of Japan's monetary easing as a pro-growth measure that could spur the world's second-biggest economy. At the same time, sentiment toward the dollar turned bearish amid a growing perception that the currency has to weaken to help finance the ballooning U.S. current account deficit.

The Japanese central bank unexpectedly raised the upper end of its target for banking system liquidity and made its money market operations more flexible.

It does raise suspicion that the Bank of Japan is pretty much resigned to yen appreciation and is looking ahead to a crimp in exports," said Sean Callow, IDEAglobal currency analyst.

The dollar dropped 0.43 percent to 108.60 yen , after falling to a new three-year low of 108.28 yen.

Against the dollar, the euro climbed 0.50 percent to $1.1801. The single European currency also rose 0.17 percent against the yen to 128.13 yen. Against the Swiss franc, the dollar was at 1.3115 francs , down 0.34 percent on the day. The pound fell 0.19 percent against the dollar to $1.6632 .

The strength of the euro against the dollar helped gold recover from Thursday's losses. December gold ended up $4.30 at $374.10 an ounce, trading from $370.30 to $374.50. On Thursday the contract fell $6.20, stopping at $368.60, $1.60 above last week's bottom.

GE WARNING WEIGHS ON STOCKS

General Electric (NYSE:GE - news) weighed on the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average after the conglomerate posted third-quarter earnings in line with analysts' estimates but cut its fourth-quarter earnings guidance, blaming weak demand for gas turbines and higher costs at its plastics division.

The Dow (^DJI - news) dipped 5.33 points, or 0.06 percent, to 9,674.68, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index (^SPX - news) lost 0.67 point, or 0.06 percent, to close at 1,038.06. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC - news) rose 3.41 points, or 0.18 percent, at 1,915.31.

For the week, the Dow rose 1.07 percent, while the S&P 500 rose 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq rose 1.85 percent. The Dow gained for the eighth time in the last 10 weeks. The Nasdaq and S&P were up seven of the past nine weeks.

"We've had a nice run and people are taking a breather. You're probably seeing one of the quietest days we've had in months," said Sean Martin, head trader at A. Gary Shilling &Co.

The stock market will be open for a regular session on Monday.

World oil prices have risen about 23 percent in the two weeks since the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' surprise decision to cut production starting Nov. 1, just as furnaces in the Northern Hemisphere are warming up.

U.S. light crude oil gained 96 cents to $31.97 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after hitting $32.60, the highest since Aug. 8.

TREASURIES GAIN IN SHORT SESSION

Short-covering boosted the U.S. Treasuries market ahead of Monday's holiday, when the market will be closed. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose 10/32 to yield 4.26 percent, down from the one-month high of 4.35 percent hit on Thursday.

Two-year notes rose 1/32 to yield 1.63 percent and the 30-year bond rose 15/32 for a yield of 5.18 percent, down from 5.22 percent.

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