Investing.com - The euro strengthened against the dollar on Friday after official data revealed the U.S. economy added far fewer jobs than expected in March.
In U.S. trading on Friday, EUR/USD was up 0.70% at 1.3026, up from a session low of 1.2901 and off from a high of 1.3039.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2901, the earlier low, and resistance at 1.3107, the high from March 15.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported earlier the economy added 88,000 nonfarm payrolls in March, way below expectations for a gain of 200,000 and below the 268,000 jobs added in February.
The private sector added 95,000 jobs last month, after an increase of 254,000 in February, missing expectations for a 209,000 rise.
The report also showed that the U.S. unemployment rate ticked down to 7.6% in March, from 7.7% the previous month, as more Americans left the labor force.
Analysts were expecting the headline unemployment rate to remain unchanged last month.
The news sent the dollar falling on expectations for the Federal Reserve to keep monetary stimulus programs in place, including its USD85 billion monthly bond-buying program that weakens the greenback as a side effect.
Elsewhere in the U.S., the Commerce Department reported that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed unexpectedly in February, coming in at USD43 billion compared to a USD44.5 billion deficit the previous month.
Analysts were expecting the country's trade deficit to widen to USD44.6 billion in February.
Meanwhile in Europe, Eurostat, the statistical arm of the European Union, reported earlier that retail sales in the currency zone fell 0.3% in February, outpacing expectations for a 0.2% decline after a 0.9% rise the previous month.
Eurostat also reported that the euro area's gross domestic product contracted by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, a revision that came in line with expectations.
The euro, meanwhile, was up against the pound and up against the yen, with EUR/GBP trading up 0.03% at 0.8494, and EUR/JPY trading up 1.44% at 126.40.
In U.S. trading on Friday, EUR/USD was up 0.70% at 1.3026, up from a session low of 1.2901 and off from a high of 1.3039.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2901, the earlier low, and resistance at 1.3107, the high from March 15.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported earlier the economy added 88,000 nonfarm payrolls in March, way below expectations for a gain of 200,000 and below the 268,000 jobs added in February.
The private sector added 95,000 jobs last month, after an increase of 254,000 in February, missing expectations for a 209,000 rise.
The report also showed that the U.S. unemployment rate ticked down to 7.6% in March, from 7.7% the previous month, as more Americans left the labor force.
Analysts were expecting the headline unemployment rate to remain unchanged last month.
The news sent the dollar falling on expectations for the Federal Reserve to keep monetary stimulus programs in place, including its USD85 billion monthly bond-buying program that weakens the greenback as a side effect.
Elsewhere in the U.S., the Commerce Department reported that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed unexpectedly in February, coming in at USD43 billion compared to a USD44.5 billion deficit the previous month.
Analysts were expecting the country's trade deficit to widen to USD44.6 billion in February.
Meanwhile in Europe, Eurostat, the statistical arm of the European Union, reported earlier that retail sales in the currency zone fell 0.3% in February, outpacing expectations for a 0.2% decline after a 0.9% rise the previous month.
Eurostat also reported that the euro area's gross domestic product contracted by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, a revision that came in line with expectations.
The euro, meanwhile, was up against the pound and up against the yen, with EUR/GBP trading up 0.03% at 0.8494, and EUR/JPY trading up 1.44% at 126.40.