The US dollar showed volatile reaction to nonfarm payrolls, sinking after the release but rebounding almost immediately afterwards. That should not be a surprise considering that the report was very mixed. Currently, the greenback reversed its movement yet again and went lower.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment rose by just 134,000 in September, demonstrating a rate of growth that was far slower than was predicted by analysts (185,000) and the August revised reading (270,000; 201,000 before the revision). The increase happened in the following sectors:
Job gains occurred in professional and business services, in health care, and in transportation and warehousing.
At the same time, the unemployment rate edged down from 3.9% to 3.7%, below the 3.8% level predicted by the consensus forecast. Average hourly earnings rose 0.3% — the same as in August (revised, 0.4% before the revision) and in line with expectations.
Released separately, the trade balance showed a deficit of $53.2 billion in August, up from $50.0 billion in July. The reading matched forecasts.
EUR/USD traded at 1.1535 as of 12:57 GMT today after opening at 1.1514 and falling to the daily low of 1.1484. GBP/USD gained from 1.3019 to 1.3084. USD/JPY opened at 113.88, rallied to 114.10 intraday but retreated to 113.76 later.
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