The U.S. dollar index was trading higher on Monday after strong U.S. jobs data out on Friday helped boost investor confidence. The non-farm payroll report released on Friday showed the creation of 304,000 new jobs in January, the highest in 11 months, beating analyst expectations. The dollar index was up 0.14 percent to 95.72 .DXY as of 2:27 HK/SIN, with the dollar strengthening against all of its primary trading partners. The greenback was up 0.24 percent against the yen to 109.74, and 0.03 percent against the Canadian dollar, to $1.3103. The euro eased 0.13 percent against the dollar, to $1.1439, while the pound eased 0.07 percent to $1.3074.
Wall Street traded mixed on Friday despite the positive jobs report, pressured heavily by a weaker-than-expected outlook from Amazon which shook the wider markets. Traders are now eyeing remaining earnings reports in the hope that they will show a positive outlook that will send Wall Street higher.
In Asian, trade markets were mixed. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.46 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 0.21 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi struggled, trading down 0.06 percent. China’s markets are closed all week in celebration of the Lunar New Year.
Commodity Market Movements
Oil markets reacted positively to the strong jobs report, with traders reacting to the strong outlook and production cuts in Venezuela by expecting price rises. By mid-afternoon on Monday, however, U.S. WTI futures had crossed into negative territory, trading down 0.09 percent to $55.21 per barrel. Brent crude futures were still positive, up 0.05 percent to $62.78 per barrel.
Gold prices were lower on Monday afternoon, down 0.40 percent to $1,316.80 per ounce. Silver, platinum and copper prices were also in the red.