US job growth slowed more than expected in July, and non-farm payrolls rose by 157,000 jobs. The economy needs to create 120,000 jobs per month to keep pace with population growth, and unemployment fell to 3.9 percent as expected.
The slowdown in job growth is likely to be due not to trade tensions but to a lack of employment, with about 6.6 million vacancies in the economy. Average hourly wages rose by 0.3% in July after rising by 0.1% in June, leaving the annual increase at 2.7%.
The dollar index fell from its highest level since July 19 at 95.37 following the data, but is still trading within 95 levels.
The Pound fell yesterday below 1.29, after the UK rate rose for the second time since the global financial crisis to 0.75%, after remarks by Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England that there are uncomfortable risks of leaving Britain to the European Union.
