Dollar pauses after last week's surge

[NEW YORK] The dollar retreated Monday against major currencies after Friday's strong September jobs report lifted the US currency late last week.

On Friday, the dollar bolted to a fresh two-year high against the euro after the Department of Labour reported the US economy added 248,000 jobs in September and that unemployment fell to 5.9 per cent.

But traders took profits on the euro-dollar trade on Monday, analysts said.

The euro "found a modicum of support" above the US$1.25 level, and "not even the steady drumbeat of disappointing economic news could stop the bargain hunters from propping up the unit," said Boris Schlossberg, managing director at BK Asset Management.

Monday's poor eurozone data included a 5.7 per cent drop in German factory orders in August, said Schlossberg, adding that the currency's gains could be short-lived.

"The latest round of economic data from the region suggests that ECB cannot stand still much longer as conditions are clearly deteriorating," he said. - AFP