The buildup to the US Non-Farm Payrolls begins with a bang: the ISM Manufacturing PMI rebounds to 51.5 points, much better than 50.4 expected and even better considering last month’s contraction at 49.4 points. The employment component is still in contraction territory, at 49.7 points, under the 50 point threshold separating expansion and contraction. Nevertheless, the improvement from 48.3 points is notable. The forward-looking new orders component is up to 55.1 points.
Holcomb of the ISM sounds optimistic as usual. Markit’s parallel manufacturing measure was confirmed at 51.4, a very similar outcome. A separate report shows that construction spending is down 0.7%, worse than expected. However, this doesn’t ruin the celebration.
The US dollar is responding positively across the board. USD/JPY is trading higher at 101.60.
More: USD: Subject To A ‘Large Appreciation’ On ‘Backward Induction‘ – Goldman Sachs
Here is the EUR/USD chart, showing a slide within the range, erasing some of the gains it made on Friday, following the good news regarding Deutsche Bank.
GBP/USD, which was already falling on Hard Brexit worries, extended its losses and seems to be heading towards the 31 year lows of 1.2790.
Share
