Greenback Slides after U.S. Jobs Report.
The greenback dropped after the Labor Department said U.S. non-farm payrolls rose by 113,000 in January, well below the consensus estimate of economists polled of 185,000. Its driving U.S. treasury yields lower and taking away an advantage for the dollar. While the unemployment rate dropped the lowest since October 2008 at 6.6%, as increasing labor force participation indicated people are more hopeful about attaining a job.Narrower UK Trade Deficit Boosts Sterling.
Sterling rose against the dollar as data showing a sharp narrowing of Britain's trade deficit offset lower-than-expected industrial output numbers. But gains are likely to be held in check before next Wednesday's inflation report, within which the Bank of England is expected to unveil a new plan to guide interest rate expectations after the previous one was overtaken by a strong recovery.Weak Jobs Number Alone Won’t Sway Fed.
Despite another anemic jobs report, central bankers are on the right course with tapering their monthly bond purchases, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher told CNBC. "They are not swayed by a single number," said Fisher, a voting member this year on the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee. Reacting to the January jobs report, Fisher said he's skeptical of the notion that monetary policy is holding back hiring. "I believe that we need to continue this [tapering] process because the efficacy, is wearing very, very thin."Asian Shares Gain as US Jobless Claims Fall.
Asian stocks rose as falling U.S. jobless claims signaled better U.S. labor market condition. Nikkei edge higher with investors encouraged by gains on Wall Street a day earlier, and a weaker yen ahead of the release of key U.S. jobs data. Kospi rally after data showed foreign investors were net buyers of domestic shares for the first time in five sessions. Hang Seng rose for a second day, encouraged by China’s markets rally that reopened from the Lunar New Year holidays.src:monex
