Get 40% Off
⚠ Earnings Alert! Which stocks are poised to surge?
See the stocks on our ProPicks radar. These strategies gained 19.7% year-to-date.
Unlock full list

Forex - Dollar drops as U.S. adds more jobs than expected in April

Published 05/03/2013, 03:42 PM
Updated 05/03/2013, 03:42 PM
Investing.com - The U.S. dollar weakened against most major currencies on Friday after the Department of Labor reported that the economy picked up more jobs than expected in April and upwardly revised previous months' figures.

In U.S. trading on Friday, EUR/USD was up 0.35% at 1.3111.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported earlier that the U.S. economy added 165,000 nonfarm payrolls in April, up from 138,000 in March, whose figure was revised up from 88,000.

April's figures far outpaced analysts' forecasts for a 145,000 figure, while February's figures were revised to 332,000 from 268,000.

The headline unemployment rate ticked down to 7.5% in April from 7.6% in March.

The numbers fueled demand for risk-on asset classes such as stocks, which enticed investors out of the safety of the dollar.

Elsewhere, the Institute for Supply Management reported that its April non-manufacturing index fell to 53.1 in April from 54.4 in March, missing market calls for a 54.0 reading, the slowest pace of expansion since July of last year.

Still, a reading over 50 indicates expansion.

The greenback, meanwhile, was down against the pound, with GBP/USD trading up 0.20% at 1.5564.

The dollar was up against the yen, with USD/JPY up 1.13% at 99.06, and up against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF trading up 0.08% at 0.9356.

The dollar was down against its cousins in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with USD/CAD down 0.27% at 1.0078, AUD/USD up 0.69% at 1.0320 and NZD/USD trading up 0.58% at 0.8544.

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.14% at 82.17.
 









Latest comments

It seems the FX speculators can do nothing with a strengthening US economy. There's no money to be made. They need to push all currencies, especially the EUR and GBP UP & UP against the USD. Why? Simple - because the higher they artificially push them, the more money they'll make when they crash. And crash they will !
Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.