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Dollar trims losses vs. rivals in quiet trade

Published 09/05/2016, 10:54 AM
Updated 09/05/2016, 10:54 AM
© Reuters.  Dollar pulls back from session lows but remains under pressure

© Reuters. Dollar pulls back from session lows but remains under pressure

Investing.com - The dollar trimmed losses against the other major currencies in quiet trade on Monday, although Friday’s downbeat U.S. employment report crushed expectations for a U.S. rate hike in the near future.

Trading volumes were expected to remain thin on Monday as U.S. markets were set to remain closed for the Labor Day holiday.

EUR/USD was little changed at 1.1147.

The greenback remained under pressure after data on Friday showed that the U.S. economy added 151,000 jobs in August, disappointing expectations for an increase of 180,000.

The U.S. unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.9% this month, confounding expectations for a downtick to 4.8%.

The report also showed that average hourly earnings rose 0.1% in August, below expectations for a 0.2% increase.

The disappointing data dampened expectations for a near-term rate hike, as Fed officials recently indicated that the pace of interest rate increases will be data-dependent.

GBP/USD was also steady at 1.3304, after hitting one-month highs of 1.3375 earlier in the day.

The pound strengthened after research group Markit said its U.K. services purchasing managers’ index rose to 52.9 last month from a reading of 47.4 in July. Analysts had expected the index to rise to 50.0.

The upbeat data added to current optimism over the strength of the economy and Britain’s ability to overcome any post-Brexit hurdles.

USD/JPY declined 0.42% to trade at 103.47, while USD/CHF was little changed at 0.9805.

The Australian and New Zealand dollars were stronger, with AUD/USD up 0.11% at 0.7581 and with NZD/USD adding 0.19% to 0.7305.

Earlier Monday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that company operating profits increased by 6.9% in the second quarter, compared to expectations for a 2.0% rise.

Company operating profits declined by 4.4% in the first quarter, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 4.7% drop.

Elsewhere, USD/CAD slid 0.49% to 1.2925, the lowest since August 26.

The commodity currencies were boosted oil prices moved sharply higher on Monday, after Saudi Arabia and Russia signed a joint statement to cooperate on stabilizing oil markets.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.09% at 95.79, off session lows of 95.55 hit earlier in the day.

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