- NZD/USD fell sharply in the second half of the day on Friday.
- US Dollar Index advances higher toward 93.00 after strong jobs report.
- Nonfarm Payrolls in the US increased by 943,000 in July.
The NZD/USD pair declined sharply ahead of the weekend amid renewed USD strength and was last seen losing 0.62% on a daily basis at 0.7010. Following the upsurge witnessed earlier in the week on the back of upbeat jobs report from New Zealand, the pair now remains on track to end the week virtually unchanged.
DXY rises after NFP data
The data published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed on Friday that Nonfarm Payrolls surged by 943,000 in July. This reading beat the market expectation of 870,000 and provided a boost to the greenback. Additionally's June's print got revised up to 938,000 from 850,000.
Moreover, the Unemployment Rate fell to 5.4% from 5.9% and came in better than analysts' estimate of 5.7%. The US Dollar Index, which spent the majority of the day moving sideways near 92.20, is currently up 0.6% at 92.81.
Commenting on the US labour market report, "the better-than-expected July report is certainly a step in the direction of “substantial further progress” that the Fed is looking for," noted Wells Fargo analysts. "We continue to look for the factors currently constraining the labour supply to ease this fall, which should keep hiring strong."