On Friday, April 4, 2008, in Singapore the U.S. Dollar was steady against major currencies, as traders anxiously await the release of March job data later expected to be released later today in the United States. Many economists predict that non-farm jobs will drop by at least 50% and that the unemployment rate will be 5% compared to 63,000 job losses reported in February and an unemployment rate of 4.8%. According to recent data, the weekly jobless claims increased by 407,000, which is a two year high. This increase suggests greater job losses than expected.
At 12:15 PM (04:15 GMT), in Sydney, the U.S. Dollar traded at 102.62 yen, compared to 102.32 yen in late New York trading, while the Euro traded at $1.5653 compared to $1.5662 also in late trading in New York.
The U.S. Dollar has remained steady in recent weeks as a result in increased investor confidence. According to Tim Condon, a strategist at ING, the Federal Reserve “seems to have removed the panicking in the financial markets.” However, some analysts believe that the Euro will continue to strengthen against the U.S. Dollar.
