NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – The dollar rose after data showed the U.S. economy created many more jobs than expected in May, suggesting the Federal Reserve may take its time before starting its easing cycle. of rates this year.
The data showed that nonfarm payrolls created 272,000 jobs last month, while revisions showed that 15,000 fewer jobs were created in March and April than previously reported. Economists polled by Reuters had expected employment to rise by 185,000.
The unemployment rate, however, after 27 consecutive months rose to 4% from 3.9% in April.
“This data makes it more difficult for the Fed to move towards a rate cut,” Giuseppe Sette, president of market research firm Toggle AI, wrote in an emailed comment.
“The next few months will be interesting because the Fed will have to deal with a solid performance of the economy, limiting its ability to follow the ECB’s lead and cut.”
The dollar rose 0.9% against the yen to 156.97. However, the US currency lost 0.2% on the week, its worst weekly performance since late April.
The euro lost 0.7% against the dollar to 1.0815 dollars. On a weekly basis, the single currency lost 0.22% in its worst week since the beginning of April.
The decline in the euro comes in the aftermath of the rate cut by the ECB, a widely announced move, which however was followed by little indication on the future of monetary policy, given that inflation still remains above the target.
The dollar index rose 0.7% to 104.81.
(Translated by Luca Fratangelo, editing by Sara Rossi)
