US Dollar Declines Ahead of October Employment Report
The US dollar fell against its major trading partners early Friday, except for a small increase versus the Canadian dollar, ahead of the October employment report due for release.
Nonfarm payrolls are expected to rise by 180,000 in October, a much slower pace than the 336,000 gain in September, while the unemployment rate is expected to remain at 3.8% and hourly earnings are forecast to rise by 0.3%.
A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading into Friday showed that USDEUR rose to 1.0644 from 1.0623 at the Thursday US close and 1.0635 at the same time Thursday morning.
The EU unemployment rate rose slightly in September, data released earlier Friday showed. The next European Central Bank meeting is scheduled for Dec. 14.
GBPUSD rose to 1.2221 from 1.2204 at the Thursday US close and 1.2192 at the same time Thursday morning. The Bank of England maintained its policy rate Thursday, saying the policy will need to remain restrictive for some time to lower inflation.
The next BoE meeting is scheduled for Dec. 14. The UK services purchasing managers’ index was revised modestly higher in October and now stands about the September reading but remained below its breakeven point to indicate continued contraction, data released earlier Friday showed.
USDJPY fell to 150.2048 from 150.4776 at the Thursday US close and 150.3557 at the same time Thursday morning. Friday is a holiday in Japan, so there are no data scheduled for release. The next Bank of Japan meeting is scheduled for Dec. 18-19.
USDCAD rose slightly to 1.3745 from 1.3737 at the Thursday US close but was below a 1.3809 level at the same time Thursday morning. The Canadian employment report for October is scheduled for release, at the same time as the US report. The next Bank of Canada meeting is set for Dec. 6. Nigeria’s Top 5 Railway Projects Gulp $26 Billion –Report
