Daily Wrap Up – 8 August

The US dollar rose strongly during mid-day trading to reach its highest level since July 28 at 93.75, following the JOLTS Job Index, which rose to a record high by 461,000 in June, rising to 6.2 million.

US stocks rose today as both the Dow Jones and S&P hit record highs, supported by Apple's shares rise of 1.6% to historic highs, providing a boost to the three major indexes.

In Europe, German trade slowed abruptly in June, with German exports falling by 2.8%, the biggest drop since August 2015, ending a five-month series of consecutive growth. The EURUSD fell strongly after the US labor market data, to its lowest level since July 28 at 1.1714.

The sterling pound hit a 10-month low against the euro on Friday as investors took a negative view of the UK economy following a three-month drop in consumer spending in July, with the EURGBP hitting a high of 0.9087 since October 2016.

In China, the trade surplus widened for the fifth month in a row, but exports and imports rose below expectations by 7.2% and 11%, respectively.