U.S. Dollar Jumps After Strong Jobless Numbers
Investing.com - The greenback surged on Thursday as the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance fell to an almost-50-year low last week, increasing hope that the economy is not slowing down.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, rose 0.2% to 96.887 as of 10:53AM ET (14:53 GMT).
The number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell by 10,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 202,000, the lowest level since December 1969. The data suggests that labor is not deteriorating as much as thought and is a positive prelude to Friday’s jobs report.
The dollar rose against the safe-haven yen, with USD/JPY gaining 0.1% to 111.55.
Elsewhere, sterling fell as investors realized the U.K. may be out of time to come up with a Brexit plan. The House of Lords is debating a bill to block a no-deal Brexit, but the House of Commons was closed due to flooding. Debate by the Lords, in another building, continued, with a vote scheduled later on.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May conceded that a clear plan is unlikely before an EU summit on April 10.
The U.K. had originally been due to leave the EU on March 29, but the deadline was pushed back to April 12 to allow the U.K. parliament more time to approve the withdrawal agreement, which now looks highly unlikely.
GBP/USD slumped 0.5% to 1.3093.
Elsewhere, USD/CAD rose 0.1% to 1.3348 and EUR/USD fell 0.2% to 1.1216.
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