US dollar gets a boost as employment number increases in June

The US dollar index increased against most other major currencies as investors continued to digest the country's nonfarm payrolls report for June.

In late New York trading on Monday, the euro rose to $1.1748 from $1.1746 in the previous session, and the British pound was down to $1.3256 from $1.3283 in the previous session. The Australian dollar increased to $0.7466 from $0.7430.

The US dollar bought 110.81 Japanese yen, higher than 110.68 Japanese yen of the previous session. The US dollar climbed to 0.9920 Swiss franc from 0.9900 Swiss franc, and it gained to 1.3115 Canadian dollars from 1.3102 Canadian dollars.

With no major economic data due on Monday, investors were still sifting through the June jobs report. US total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 213,000 in June, beating market consensus, the Labour Department said on Friday.

Job growth occurred in professional and business services, manufacturing, and health care, while retail trade lost jobs.

Meanwhile, as more Americans entered the labour force but not all found jobs, US unemployment rate in June rose slightly to 4 per cent from 3.8 per cent in May, the lowest level since April 2000.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.13 per cent at 94.087 in late trading.