The dollar index held around 109.6 on Monday
The dollar index held around 109.6 on Monday after hitting a two-year high in the previous session, underpinned by stronger-than-expected US jobs report that prompted markets to scale back bets on further Federal Reserve interest rate cuts this year. The December jobs data showed an unexpected gain of 256,000 jobs, far surpassing the forecast of 160,000.
The unemployment rate also surprisingly dropped to 4.1% from 4.2%, while wage growth slowed to the expected 0.3%. Traders are now anticipating that the central bank will keep rates unchanged in its upcoming meetings this month and in March. Market pricing also suggests only one quarter-point rate cut for the entire year, a sharp reduction from the 50 basis points projected at the start of January. Looking ahead, investors are focusing on US inflation data this week and fresh commentary from Federal Reserve officials for further signals on the central bank’s policy path.(Cay)
Source: Trading economi
