Dollar Slides after US Jobs Report, Pound Sterling Hits 7-Month Highs

March 8, 2024 - Written by David Woodsmith

STORY LINK Dollar Slides after US Jobs Report, Pound Sterling Hits 7-Month Highs

The latest US jobs data overall suggested that the very strong January report had been overstated and that the labour market overall was cooling.

The data also reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve would be in a position to cut interest rates in the first half of 2024. Market expectations of a June cut increased to near 80%.

In response, there was limited decline in US yields and the dollar retreated further.

The Euro to Dollar (EUR/USD) exchange rate advanced further to 8-week highs around 1.0975.

The Pound to Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate also surged to 7-month highs at 1.2890.

The dollar index also retreated to 7-week lows.

There was another very mixed US employment report for February.

The headline increase in non-farm payrolls was again notably stronger than expected at 275,000 compared with expectations of close to 200,000, but the January increase was revised sharply lower to 229,000 from the original reading of 353,000.

Manufacturing jobs declined on the month and there was a third successive decline in temporary help jobs.

There was no change in the participation rate with a reported decline in the number of employed and the unemployment rate increased to 3.9% from 3.7%.

As far as wages are concerned, there was a 0.1% increase after a revised 0.5% increase the previous month with a slight slowdown in the annual increase to 4.3% from 4.4%.

International Money Transfer? Ask our resident FX expert a money transfer question or try John's new, free, no-obligation personal service! ,where he helps every step of the way, ensuring you get the best exchange rates on your currency requirements.

TAGS: Pound Dollar Forecasts