WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The dollar got off to a positive start Friday, but has since turned lower following the release of the weaker than expected U.S. jobs report for March.
After reporting a substantial increase in U.S. employment in the previous month, the Labor Department released a report on Friday showing job growth slowed by much more than anticipated in the month of March.
The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment rose by 103,000 jobs in March after spiking by an upwardly revised 326,000 jobs in February.
Economists had expected an increase of about 193,000 jobs compared to the jump of 313,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said the unemployment rate came in at 4.1 percent in March, unchanged from the five previous months. The unemployment rate had been expected to edge down to 4.0 percent.
The dollar has fallen to around $1.2275 against the Euro Friday afternoon, from an early high of $1.2214.
Germany's industrial production declined at the fastest pace in two-and-a-half years in February largely on weak construction activity. Industrial output dropped 1.6 percent month-on-month in February, in contrast to a revised 0.1 percent rise seen in January, data from Destatis showed Friday. Output was expected to climb 0.3 percent.
Germany's construction sector contracted for the first time in more than three years in March due to colder-than-usual weather, survey data from IHS Markit showed Friday. The construction Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 47.0 in March from 52.7 in February. This was the first time since January 2015 that the score fell below the 50.0 no-change level.
France's trade deficit decreased in February as the pace of decline in imports was bigger than the fall in exports, the customs office said Friday. The trade deficit narrowed to EUR 5.2 billion from EUR 5.4 billion in January. The shortfall was expected to fall to EUR 5.3 billion.
France's current account deficit remained stable in February, data from the Bank of France showed Friday. The seasonally and working-day-adjusted current account deficit came in at EUR 2.0 billion in February, unchanged from January.
The buck has dropped to around $1.4085 against the pound sterling this afternoon, from a high of $1.3982 this morning.
The greenback reached an early high of Y107.457 against the Japanese Yen Friday, but has since retreated to around Y106.850.
The average of household spending in Japan was up 0.1 percent on year in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said on Friday, coming in at 265,614 yen. That was shy of expectations for an increase of 0.3 percent following the 2.0 percent spike in January.
Labor cash earnings in Japan were up 1.3 percent on year in February, the Bank of Japan said on Friday. That beat expectations for a gain of 0.5 percent following the upwardly revised 1.2 percent spike in January.
Japan's leading index improved unexpectedly in February, though slightly, preliminary figures from the Cabinet Office showed Friday. The leading index, which measures the future economic activity, rose to 105.6 in February from 105.6 in January. Meanwhile, economists had expected the index to fall to 105.5.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX