Investing.com - The euro erased gains against the U.S. dollar on Friday, as strong U.S. economic reports fueled optimism over the strength of the economy, lending broad support to the greenback.
EUR/USD pulled away from 1.1363, the pair’s highest since October, to hit 1.1358 during U.S. morning trade, slipping 0.20%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.1286, the low of March 30 and resistance at 1.1496.
The Institute for Supply Management said its index of purchasing managers advanced to 51.8 last month from a reading of 49.5 in February. Analysts had expected the manufacturing PMI to rise to 50.7 in March.
Separately, the University of Michigan said that its consumer sentiment index hit 91.0 in March, up from a previously estimated reading of 90.0 and higher than expectations for 90.5.
The reports came after the U.S. Labor Department said the economy added 215.000 jobs in March, exceeding expectations for an increase of 205.000. The number of jobs created increased by 245.000 in February, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated gain of 242.000.
The U.S. unemployment rate ticked up to 5.0% this month from 4.9% in February. Analysts had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged in March.
The report also showed that U.S. average hourly earnings rose 0.3% in March, exceeding expectations for an uptick of 0.2%, after a 0.1% fall the previous month.
In the euro zone, Markit research group reported on Friday that its euro zone manufacturing PMI rose to 51.6 in March from 51.4 the previous month, exceeding expectations for an unchanged reading.
In Germany, the manufacturing PMI rose to 50.7 this month from 50.4 in February, while the French manufacturing PMI remained unchanged at 49.6.
The euro was sharply higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP rallying 1.01% to 0.8004.
Markit earlier reported that its U.K. manufacturing PMI rose to 51.0 in March from 50.8 the previous month, disappointing expectations for an increase to 51.2.