The poor US Nonfarm Payrolls data rocked the market last week, which led to a weaker greenback across the board. The number came out at 74k, which was far lower than the projected 200k. Other employment-related data was mostly dismal as well. Although the unemployment rate was now at 6.7 per cent, more than 50 per cent of the jobs gained in December were only temporary ones.
The effect of the news continued to spill over today's trading. For example, the USD/JPY pair spent much of the Asian session on a steady slide, from above the 104.00 level to around the 103.30 zone.
Currently, the pair is trading at 103.48, with initial resistance seen at 104.72, followed by 104.98. Meanwhile, initial support is at 103.19, followed by 102.93.
The AUD/USD pair also benefited from the poor US NFP data, as it broke past the 0.9000 barrier again. It hit the 0.9035 level, which gave it its highest level in a month.
The pair is trading at 0.9026 at the moment, which initial resistance seen at 0.9067, followed by 0.9090. Meanwhile, initial support is at 0.8936, followed by 0.8913.
Like most of the currencies trading against the greenback, the kiwi also rose after the disappointing US NFP data. Although the NZD/USD pair sank to a low of 0.8205 in Friday's session, it managed to make a sharp rise in today's trading. It has so far made a jump of about 120 pips.
The pair is currently trading at 0.8324, with initial resistance seen at 0.8356, followed by 0.8377. Meanwhile, initial support is at 0.8253, followed by 0.8232.
The rest of the week will be fairly quiet in the US, with only Retail Sales data (14 Jan) and Consumer Price Index (16 Jan) being the most significant. That said, the greenback's weakness might persist throughout the week.
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