NFP report for December at 1:30 pm GMT was a key release of the day. Highlights of the report:
- Non-farm payrolls: -140k vs 50k expected
- Unemployment rate: 6.7% vs 6.7% expected
- Wage growth: 5.1% YoY vs 4.4% YoY expected
Report confirmed drop in employment signalled by ADP data released on Wednesday (-123k). Stock market indices pulled back on the release but the scale of the drop has been limited. US dollar strengthened in a knee-jerk move but gains have been mostly erased already. Muted reaction can be explained with the fact that the United States has passed an economic relief package by the end of December and it is expected to brighten outlook for the US labour market. Moreover, there are growing expectations that Democrats will rush with another stimulus package after Biden's inauguration.
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Create account Try a demo Download mobile app Download mobile appUS500 pulled back following NFP data release. However, scale of decline is quite minor as investors expect Democrats to work on another stimulus package soon. Source: xStation5