Dollar up sharply; gold plunges


Today's jobs number could be game changer. US jobs fell by only 11,000. Analysts had expected 130,000.

Traders reacted instantly. The S & P initially rose 1.3% to 1,117.20,but has turned lower.

The dollar rose against the euro, up .8%. The euro traded at $1.49, down against the dollar. Against the yen, the dollar rose 1.7% to Y89.80. On a trade weighted basis the dollar traded at 75.29.

With hope of a of a stronger economy, oil initially rose 1.3% to $77.48 per barrel, but followed commodities lower. Gold, which had trading higher on a weak dollar, fell 1.5% to $1,188.20 per ounce. At noon EDT, gold was down $49.00 per ounce.


Bonds, which often move opposite to stocks, fell with the yield rising 14 basis points.

Coming back to today's job numbers, traders have had a free ride trading gold higher and the dollar lower. It could be time to evaluate your trading strategy. If the dollar turns upward here, gold could pull back sharply. Investors could regain their belief that the US economy is on the mend. This would be a strong incentive to buy dollars again.

On the flip side, a stronger economy could signal an end to stimulus and higher interest rates.

As always, watch the dollar. The state of a country's economy is reflected in its currency.

Do you believe that our economy will rebound next year?

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Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA-13.8112,864.39
NASDAQ+3.782,907.86
S&P 500+0.081,347.13

Last updated: February 08, 2012: 02:03 PM

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