Major FX markets are ending the week on a whimper rather than a bang, with little notable price action ahead of the long bank holiday weekend beyond the Swiss Franc’s ongoing depreciation.
US labour data for April failed to have any inpact on the Dollar despite being robust overall. The unemployment rate fell to a multi-decade low of 3.9% and non-farm payrolls rose by 164,000 or a solid 1.6% year-on-year despite the recovery in the US labour market being very mature. Aggregate payroll growth rose to near 5% yoy in nominal terms, or 2.5% yoy when adjusted for inflation. This should be sufficient to further fuel US consumption and a slow rise in US inflation but seems to have fallen short in the eyes of markets which still only expect two more Federal Reserve rate hikes before year-end.
In emerging markets, it’s a mixed performance with the Mexican Peso still under pressure but the Russian Rouble and South African Rand have extended their gains.
