US Dollar Weakens After Jobs Data Misses Expectations
The US dollar weakened sharply against other major currencies on Friday after key jobs data showed that American companies were hiring fewer jobs than expected due to a weakening labor market, which is likely to lead to a Federal Reserve interest rate cut.
Labor Department data showed that non-farm payroll employment increased by only 22,000 jobs last month, well below the 75,000 positions forecast by economists polled by Reuters.
The US dollar weakened overall after the report. It weakened 0.77% to 147.34 against the Japanese yen and fell 0.73% to 0.8001 against the Swiss franc.
The euro strengthened 0.7% against the US dollar to $1.173, while the US dollar index fell 0.59% to 97.65. US Treasury bond yields fell. The yield on the interest-rate-sensitive 2-year bond fell 10.3 basis points to 3.489%. (alg)
Source: Reuters