Dollar rebounds after weak jobs data; traders eye U.S. election

 The dollar rose against the euro and rebounded against most major currencies on Friday after traders digested data showing U.S. job growth slowed sharply in October amid disruptions from hurricanes and strike action by aerospace factory workers.

Nonfarm payrolls rose by 12,000 jobs after a downwardly revised 223,000 in September, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast October payrolls rising 113,000.

The U.S. unemployment rate, however, held steady at 4.1%, offering assurance that the labor market remains on a solid footing.

Hurricane Helene devastated the Southeast in late September and Hurricane Milton lashed Florida a week later. A total 41,400 new workers were on strike, including machinists at Boeing and Textron, an aircraft company, when employers were surveyed for October’s employment report.

“The dollar index has fully recovered since this morning’s data release, shifting focus towards the uncertainty surrounding the upcoming (U.S. presidential) election,” said Uto Shinohara, senior investment strategist at Mesirow in Chicago.

“Current polls continue to depict the race as a toss-up, with a potential risk of delayed results, making next week a busy one, since the (Federal Reserve) is also meeting just days later.”

The subdued jobs report, he added, maintains the Fed’s trajectory for a 25-basis-point interest-rate cut this month.

The euro was down 0.40% against the dollar at $1.084.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, was up 0.36% at 104.24.

“It’s important when looking at the downward revisions, especially that most of that wildly negative figure came in August rather than in September, so the picture for the end of the year still doesn’t seem too grisly,” said Helen Given, associate director of trading at Monex USA.