The Euro to US Dollar (EUR/USD) exchange rate fell to a new two-year low on Friday due to strong economic data out of the world’s largest economy and as investors ignored a stronger than forecast Eurozone Retail Sales report.
Unemployment in the world’s largest economy, fell to a six-year low in September according to data published by the Washington based Labour Department.
The nation’s jobless rate fell from 6.1% in August to 5.9%, the lowest level seen since July 2008.
Data showed that the number of new jobs created by US employers also increased strongly over the same period. The data showed that 248,000 new jobs were created last month, beating market expectations for figure of 215,000. Job creation in the previous month was also revised higher from 142,000 to 180,000.
Adding yet more strength to the high flying ‘Buck’ was a separate data release, which showed that the USA’s trade deficit narrowed more than forecast last month. The trade deficit narrowed to $40.10 billion in August, below the $40.90 billion expected by analysts.
Another report also showed that the USA’s Service sector expanded in September to cap its best quarter of expansion in more than 10 years. The service sector is the biggest part of the US economy.
The Institute for Supply Managements non-manufacturing index came at 58.6, slightly lower than the previous month but was better than the 58.5 figure forecast by traders.
The US Dollar surged against all of its most traded peers after the data was released
Traders shrugged off some surprisingly positive data from the Eurozone as they fixed their attention on the USA.
According to Eurostat, Retail sales across the 18-member currency bloc leapt by 1.2% on a month on month basis in August and advanced by 1.9% on a year on year basis. The figures were far stronger than the 0.1% and 0.5% figures forecast.
Eurostat data showed sales of non-food products, and fuel at petrol stations made the biggest contribution to the monthly rise of the index in August, with the Eurozone’s biggest economy Germany reporting the biggest gain of 2.5%.
Despite the strong figures, the Euro fell against the US Dollar and Pound. Data released earlier in the session, which showed that the Eurozone’s service sector saw a dip in activity and ongoing concerns over the health of the region’s economy weighed.
Euro Exchange Rate News:
[table width=”100%” colwidth=”50|50|50|50|50″ colalign=”left|left|left|left|left”]
Currency, ,Currency,Rate ,
Euro,
,US Dollar,1.2508 ,
Euro,,British Pound,0.7834 ,
Euro,,Australian Dollar,1.4426 ,
Euro,,Canadian Dollar,1.4063 ,
[/table]
