Employment data in the US has been released. According to the Department of Labor, nonfarm payrolls (NFP) increased by 151,000 in February, falling below expectations, while the unemployment rate rose from 4% to 4.1%. Expectations were for an increase of 170,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 4%.

Average hourly earnings rose in February by 0.3%, in line with expectations. The previous month’s 0.5% increase was revised down to 0.4%. Despite an expectation of a 4.1% increase on a yearly basis, a 4% increase was seen. Following the employment data, the Euro/dollar exchange rate reached an intraday high of 1.08887.