Dollar Rises Against Euro, Yen On European Fears, Job Report
February 05, 2010 12:39 PM
The dollar rose today after a favorable jobs report was released for the month of January.
As of 11:35 am EST, the dollar was trading up against the euro, pound, and yen. Against the euro, the dollar advanced 0.4% to $1.3670; against the pound, the dollar moved up 0.7% to $1.5642; and against the yen, the dollar advanced 0.3% to ¥89.29.
The fiscal uncertainty in Europe involving Greece, Spain, Portugal, and other distressed EU members has driven investors from the euro into the relative safety of the dollar and the yen, which have both advanced against the euro considerably in the past week.
The jobs report issued today still reflected an unemployment rate of 9.7%, but investors were encouraged by the fact that the rate of jobs lost per month has slowed down. Furthermore, the manufacturing sector reported a net job gain for the first time in over two years.
Expect the euro to continue to fall in the long run until the EU devises a plan to handle its economic difficulties that satisfies investors and analysts. I predict that will not bear fruit until the middle of the year.
