The dollar erased earlier gains after U.S. jobs data showed employers added 223,000 jobs in December, more than economists’ forecasts, while wage growth in the month eased.
Economists had expected 200,000 jobs would be added. Wages grew by 0.3% last month, a drop from 0.4% in November and below forecasts of 0.4%. That lowered the year-on-year increase in wages to 4.6% from 4.8% in November.
”There was a bit of a fear that this could be quite a blockbuster print in terms of job growth,” which was a risk due to seasonal adjustments that are common in December, said Mazen Issa, senior foreign exchange strategist at TD Securities in New York.
The easing wage growth was also ”encouraging,” Issa added, though he noted that there were hawkish elements in the data.
”You had the unemployment rate dropping, which was not expected, and an increase in the participation rate,” Issa said. ”This number doesn’t do anybody any favors in determining whether the Fed needs to do 25 or 50 at its next meeting.”
The dollar was last little changed on the day against a basket of currencies at 105.11, after earlier reaching 105.63, the highest since Dec. 7.
The euro was also flat on the day at $1.0524, and the dollar gained 0.20% against the yen to 133.64.
The Federal Reserve hiked rates by 50 basis points at its December meeting, after making four consecutive 75-bp increases.
Fed funds futures traders increased bets the Fed will hike rates by 25 bps at the conclusion of its two-day meeting on Feb. 1 after Friday’s data. A 25-bp increase is now seen as a 67% probability, compared with 54% before, with a 50-bp hike now seen as a 33% probability.
Highly anticipated consumer price data due on Jan. 12 could influence U.S. central bank policy.
It is expected to show that headline prices were unchanged in December while core prices increased 0.3%.
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(Edited by : Pradeep John)
