FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

US Dollar Falls Early Thursday Ahead of Claims, Productivity

By

The US dollar fell against its major trading partners early Thursday ahead of the release of weekly jobless claims and revised Q1 productivity and unit labor costs at 8:30 am ET, at the same time as an appearance by Richmond Federal Reserve President Tom Barkin.

Weekly natural gas stocks are due to be released at 10:30 am ET, followed by appearances by San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly at 11:40 am ET and again at 1:10 pm ET.

Earlier Thursday, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported that May layoff intentions were the highest for a May report since the pandemic, led by the technology sector. Artificial intelligence was the main driver of layoffs in the month.

A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading into Thursday:

EUR/USD rose to 1.1635 from 1.1598 at the Wednesday US close and 1.1616 at the same time Wednesday morning. Eurozone construction PMI improved in May but still indicated contraction, while Eurozone retail sales declined in April, lowering the year-over-year rate, according to data released earlier Thursday. The next European Central Bank meeting is scheduled for June 11.

GBP/USD rose to 1.3451 from 1.3419 at the Wednesday US close, but was below a level of 1.3453 at the same time Wednesday morning. UK construction PMI declined further below the breakeven point in May, while UK car registrations increased in May, according to data released earlier Thursday. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey is due to speak at 11:40 am ET. The next Bank of England meeting is scheduled for June 18.

USD/JPY fell to 159.8482 from 160.0755 at the Wednesday US close but was above a level of 159.7966 at the same time Wednesday morning. There were no Japanese data released overnight. The next Bank of Japan meeting is scheduled for June 15-16.

USD/CAD fell to 1.3895 from 1.3896 at the Wednesday US close but was above a level of 1.3851 at the same time Wednesday morning. There are no Canadian data on Thursday's schedule. The next Bank of Canada meeting is scheduled for June 10.

Related Articles

International

Broadcom, Persian Gulf Tensions Blunt Wall Street Pre-Bell; Asia, Europe Off

Wall Street futures pointed largely lower pre-bell Thursday after chipmaker Broadcom (AVGO) issued tempered guidance, and following media reports of escalating hostilities in the Persian Gulf.In futures, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq declined 1.2%, although the venerable Dow Jones was up 0.4%.Broadcom traded down 13.9% pre-bell after the chipmaker issued below-consensus fiscal Q3 AI-related semiconductor-revenue guidance late Wednesday.CrowdStrike (CRWD) fell 10.6% pre-bell after the cybersecurity outfit reported fiscal Q1 results that topped consensus, but only marginally, after the market closed Wednesday.Asian exchanges traded lower overnight on the Middle East outlook and profit-taking in tech issues. European bourses tracked modestly lower midday on the continent.In economic news, US companies planned to cut 97,006 jobs in May, up from 83,387 in April and 93,816 a year ago, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported.On the economic calendar are the weekly jobless claims report and the Q1 productivity and costs bulletin at 8:30 am.The weekly EIA natural gas report is due at 10:30 am.Federal Reserve Richmond President Thomas Barkin and San Francisco President Mary Daly are slated to speak on Thursday.In pre-market action, Bitcoin traded at $62,445, West Texas Intermediate crude oil traded down 1% at $95.02, and 10-year US Treasuries offered 4.48%. Spot gold commanded $4,467 an ounce.

$^DJI$^IXIC$^SPX
International

Persian Gulf Gloom Darkens Asian Stock Markets

Asian stock markets fell back Thursday on overnight Wall Street cues and after media reports of fresh hostilities between US and Iranian forces, including a fresh barrage unleashed by Tehran upon the Kuwait International Airport.Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo finished in the red, as did most other regional exchanges, on the dimming outlook for a settlement that could re-open the Strait of Hormuz, the sea passageway vital to Asian Pacific crude supplies.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower and could not recover, finishing off 1.3% as traders weighed Middle East war reports against rich tech-sector valuations.The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 931.44 to 67,470.69, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 166 to 56.Leading the upside was semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker Disco, up 5.1%, while tech financier SoftBank declined 11.3%.In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened lower and drifted south, closing off 1.5%.The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 379.81 to 25,253.40 as losing issues outnumbered gainers 75 to 12. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 1.6% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 0.9%.Leading the upside was toolmaker Techtronic, gaining 1.7%, while Contemporary Amperex Technology declined 7%.On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.6% to 4,057.78.On the other regional exchanges, the South Korean KOSPI fell 1.8%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 1.7%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 1.1%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 1.4%, but the Thai Set advanced 0.4%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was steady.The MSCI All Country Asia Pacific Index fell 1.7% on the day.

$^HSI$^N225$^SSEC
International

Challenger US May Layoff Intentions Jump to Highest for Month Since 2020 on AI-Related Cuts

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said Thursday that companies planned to cut 97,006 jobs in May, up from 83,387 in April and 93,816 a year ago.The May total was the highest for the month since May 2020 at the start of the pandemic and was driven by 38,242 layoff intentions in the technology industry. The transportation sector had the second highest layoff intentions with 6,909.The most cited reason for layoffs was artificial intelligence, which accounted for 38,579 of the monthly total, followed by market and economic conditions with 16,587 of the total."On top of the headline AI story, we're seeing a sharp rise in cuts tied to acquisitions and mergers and a jump in bankruptcy-related losses, which tells me companies are restructuring aggressively as they reposition for an AI-driven economy," said Andy Challenger, the company's chief revenue officer.There were 19,536 hiring plans announced in May, up from the 10,049 hiring plans in April and 9,683 plans in May 2025. Interestingly, the technology sector was also the largest hiring sector, with 11,250 intentions.