Investing.com - U.S. nonfarm private employment rose much more than expected in February, hitting its highest reading in almost 11 years and bolstering optimism over the health of the labor market, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, payroll processing firm ADP said non-farm private employment rose by a seasonally adjusted 298,000 payrolls in February, well above forecasts for an increase of 190,000 and its strongest reading since March 2006.
Furthermore, the economy created 261,000 jobs in January, whose figure was revised up from a previously reported increase of 246,000.
While not viewed as a reliable guide for the government jobs report due on Friday, March 10, it does give guidance on private-sector hiring.
After the report, EUR/USD was trading at 1.0537 from around 1.0556 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.2160 from 1.2174 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 114.57 compared to 114.23 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 102.11, compared to 101.94 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a flat open. The Dow futures dropped 0.01%, the S&P 500 futures slipped 0.01%, while Nasdaq 100 futures inched down 0.05%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,209.50 a troy ounce, compared to $1,212.15 ahead of the data, while crude oil was at $52.56 a barrel, compared to $52.60 before the release.