FX.co ★ Dollar Rises Helped by Strong Jobs Data

The US dollar index rose above 99.1 on Tuesday as investors evaluated a mix of economic data to gauge the Federal Reserve's future interest rate actions. Despite this increase, the dollar remains close to a six-week low due to ongoing concerns about economic growth and uncertainty regarding potential US trade agreements. On the employment front, JOLTs data revealed an unexpected rise in job openings, which climbed to 7.39 million in April from a revised 7.2 million in March, surpassing the forecast of 7.1 million. This suggests continued strength in the labor market. Conversely, factory orders experienced a sharp decline of 3.7% in April, exceeding expectations and pointing to weakness in the manufacturing sector. Federal Reserve officials generally support maintaining current interest rates, attributing this stance to trade policy uncertainty, despite pressure from President Trump advocating for rate cuts. Meanwhile, the OECD has revised down its global growth forecast, now estimating US GDP growth at only 1.6% for 2025 and 1.5% for 2026, citing rising trade tensions as a contributing factor.