U.S. Dollar Recovers As Jobless Rate Declines To 8-year Low

The U.S. dollar came off from recent losses against its major counterparts in European deals on Friday, as jobless rate declined in January to lowest since February 2008.

Data released from the Labor Department showed that the unemployment rate edged down to 4.9 percent in January from 5.0 percent in December, while economists had expected the rate to come in unchanged.

The unexpected decrease pulled the unemployment rate down to its lowest level since a matching rate in February of 2008.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment climbed by 151,000 jobs in January compared to economist estimates for an increase of about 188,000 jobs.

In other economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing that the U.S. trade deficit widened more than expected in December, driven by a rise in imports and fall in exports.

The report said the trade deficit widened to $43.4 billion in December from a revised $42.2 billion in November. The deficit has been expected to widen to $43.0 billion.

But the dollar's rise was limited, as the traders no longer expect the Fed to hike rates in March, given recent soft economic indicators and tighter financial conditions that could alter the U.S. growth outlook.

The greenback was trading mixed in Asian deals. While the currency held steady against the yen, franc and the euro, it rose against the pound.

The greenback, having fallen to more than a 2-week low of 116.29 against the Japanese yen in recent deals, rebounded to 117.31. The next possible resistance for the greenback-yen pair is seen around the 118.5 area.

Preliminary figures from the Cabinet Office showed that Japan's leading index decreased more-than-expected to the weakest level in nearly three years in December.

The leading index fell to 102.0 in December from 103.2 in the previous month. Economists had forecast the index to drop to 102.7.

The greenback advanced to 0.9966 against the Swiss franc, reversing from more than a 3-week low of 0.9880 hit in the immediate aftermath of the data. If the greenback-franc pair extends gain, 1.01 is possibly found as its next resistance level.

The greenback reversed from an early 2-1/2-month low of 1.1244 against the euro, advancing to 1.1126. On the upside, 1.10 is likely seen as the greenback's next resistance level.

Provisional data from Destatis showed that Germany's factory orders declined more than expected in December.

Orders fell 0.7 percent in December from November, when it advanced 1.5 percent. This was the first decrease in three months. The pace of decline was faster than a 0.5 percent drop forecast by economists.

The greenback strengthened to a 2-day high of 1.4458 against the pound, coming off from its prior low of 1.4591. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 1.42 zone.

The Bank of England Deputy Governor Ben Broadbent said that there is no urgency to raise U.K. interest rates at present and the falling oil prices have benefited the economy, which is enjoying a robust recovery.

There was "certainly no great urgency to raise rates at the moment", Broadbent said in an interview on the BBC Radio 5.

The greenback climbed to 2-day highs of 0.7108 against the aussie and 0.6631 against the kiwi, after having fallen to 0.7215 and a 5-week low of 0.6749, respectively in early deals. On the upside, the greenback may locate resistance around 0.70 against the aussie and 0.65 against the kiwi.

Looking ahead, Canada Ivey purchasing managers index for January and U.S. consumer credit for December are set to be published shortly.