Dollar Weakens As Uptick In U.S. Jobless Rate Raises Hopes Of Moderate Rate Hike

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar dropped against its major counterparts in the European session on Friday, as the nation's jobless rate rose more than expected in October, raising the prospect of a slowdown in the pace of rate hikes in the coming months.

Data from the Labor Department showed that the unemployment rate increased to 3.7 percent in October from 3.5 percent in September. The unemployment rate was expected to inch up to 3.6 percent.

Non-farm payroll employment jumped by 261,000 jobs in October after surging by an upwardly revised 315,000 jobs in September.

Economists had expected employment to climb by 200,000 jobs.

Speculation about a possible loosening of the "zero-COVID" strategy in China also weighed on the safe-haven currency.

The Global Times reported that the Chinese National Health Commission emphasized on Wednesday that the country's COVID-19 prevention efforts should proceed "prudently and delicately" and with "the shortest time and lowest cost possible".

The currency fell against its key counterparts in the Asian session.

The USD/CHF pair touched a 2-day low of 0.9946. At yesterday's trading close, the pair was quoted at 1.0126. The greenback is seen finding support around the 0.97 region.

The greenback dropped to a 2-day low of 0.9940 against the euro from yesterday's close of 0.9746. The greenback may locate support around the 1.11 level.

The greenback edged down to 1.1337 against the pound, from a 2-week high of 1.1142 hit at 8:30 am ET. The pound-greenback pair had ended yesterday's trading session at 1.1157. Should the greenback falls further, it is likely to test support around the 1.27 region.

The USD/JPY pair weakened to a 2-day low of 0.9946. The pair had closed Thursday's deals at 148.26. The greenback is likely to challenge support around the 109.00 region, if it drops again.

The greenback dipped to 1.3473 against the loonie for the first time since September 23. The greenback was trading at 1.3745 against the loonie at yesterday's close. Next key support for the greenback is seen around the 1.30 level.

The greenback declined to 2-day lows of 0.5918 against the kiwi and 0.6477 against the aussie, from Thursday's closing values of 0.5770 and 0.6288, respectively. The greenback is likely to test support around 0.62 against the kiwi and 0.70 against the aussie.