US Dollar Mixed Amid Soft December Jobs Report

The  US dollar is mixed against its currency rivals at  the  end of  the  trading week, buoyed by  a  tepid jobs report that fell short of  the  market forecasts. The  December labor report suggested that job creation may be tapering off in  a  robust economy.

Last month, the  US economy added 145,000 new jobs, down from the  266,000 increase in  November, according to  the  Bureau of  Labor Statistics (BLS). The  market had penciled in  a  gain of  164,000. The  unemployment rate was unchanged at  a  50-year low of  3.5%.
For the ninth straight year, the US has created more than two million jobs per annum.
The  monthly jobs report also found that average hourly earnings rose 0.1% to  a  year-on-year jump of  2.9% and  average weekly hours dipped to  34.3 hours. The  labor force participation rate was flat at  63.2%.
Notable job gains were situated in  retail and  healthcare, but losses were pronounced in  mining. Manufacturing payrolls shed 6,000 and  government jobs picked up 12,000.
The  US Dollar Index slipped 0.03% to  97.42, from an  opening of  97.43. The  greenback, which is a  measurement of  the  dollar against a  basket of  currencies, is still on  track for  a  weekly advance of  0.7%. It is already up 1.2% so far this year.
North of  the  border, the  Canadian economy added 38,400 new jobs last month, up from the  disastrous 38,400 losses in  November. The  unemployment rate also dropped from 5.9% to  5.6%. This helped the  loonie against the  greenback to  finish the  trading week.
The  USD/CAD currency pair fell 0.16% to  1.3035, from an  opening of  1.3057, at  12:40 GMT on  Friday. The  EUR/USD rose 0.07% to  1.1114, from an  opening of  1.1107.

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