USD/CAD jumps to near 1.4380 after US/Canada labor market data

USD/CAD climbs to near 1.4380 after the release of the US/Canada employment data for February.
The Canadian Dollar weakens as the economy barely added fresh workers in February.
US NFP data misses estimates by a slight margin.

Sagar Dua FXStreet

The USD/CAD pair gains sharply to near 1.4380 in Friday’s North American session. The Loonie pair attracts significant bids after the release of the labor market data of February of both the United States (US) and Canada.

The Canadian Dollar (CAD) tumbles as Statistics Canada reported that the laborforce barely grew last month. The Canadian economy added 1.1K fresh workers, while economists expected employers to have added 20K job-seekers lower than 76K in January. The Unemployment Rate remains steady at 6.6% against estimates of 6.7%. Average Hourly Wages, a key measure of wage growth, accelerated at a robust pace to 4% from the prior release of 3.7%.

Soft labor market data is expected to boost market expectations that the Bank of Canada (BoC) will cut interest rates again in its monetary policy meeting on Wednesday.

The Canadian Dollar has been underperforming lately as US President Donald Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico. He has relaxed tariffs on goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) till April 2.

During North American trading hours on Friday, Trump ordered a reduction of the duty rate for non-USMCA-compliant potash to 10% from 25% - Federal Register Notice.

In the US region, Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) came in lower at 151K than estimates of 160K but remained higher than 125K seen in January. The jobless rate accelerated to 4.1% from estimates and the former release of 4%. A slightly lower US NFP than expectations would weigh on market expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will keep interest rates steady for longer.

Author

Sagar Dua

FXStreet

Sagar Dua is associated with the financial markets from his college days. Along with pursuing post-graduation in Commerce in 2014, he started his markets training with chart analysis.

AUD/USD stuck as the RBA talks tough into a slowdown

The Australian Dollar is going nowhere in a hurry, and the contradiction at its core explains why. The Reserve Bank of Australia keeps dangling the prospect of another hike, yet the economy it governs just expanded 0.3% in the first quarter, a clear step down from the prior pace. A central bank threatening to tighten into a visible slowdown is not a recipe for conviction in either direction, and the tape shows it.

USD/JPY: Japanese Yen coiled at the line, leaning on everyone but Japan

The Yen is doing very little, and that stasis is the whole story. USD/JPY sits glued near 160.00 not because Japan has found new strength, but because two outside forces are fighting to a draw over it: a US rate complex that keeps the dollar bid, and a Ministry of Finance that refuses to let the line break.

Gold declines below $4,500 on stalled US-Iran ceasefire talks, US NFP data looms

Gold price edges lower to near $4,470 during the early Asian session on Friday. The precious metal remains volatile amid ongoing geopolitical turmoil. Traders will closely monitor the developments surrounding the US-Iran peace deal and the US May employment report later on Friday.

DeFi hack losses drop 80% from 2022 peak as security defenses improve — Immunefi

Losses from decentralized finance exploits have fallen by 80% since reaching a record high in 2022, according to a report released by Immunefi. The report, which analyzed exploit-driven losses across major blockchain ecosystems between 2020 and 2025, found that DeFi protocol losses declined from $2.62 billion in 2022 to $534 million in 2024.

Nonfarm payrolls: Testing the limits of Fed policy patience

The upcoming nonfarm payrolls report for May will provide the final update on the US labor market before Kevin Warsh attends his first policy meeting as the new Fed Chair later this month.

Recession on paper: What really moves the Canadian Loonie now?

Statistics Canada handed the headline writers a gift and the analysts a headache. Real GDP shrank 0.1% on an annualized basis in the first quarter, and with the fourth quarter of 2025 revised down to a 1.0% contraction, that is two negative quarters in a row, the textbook definition of a technical recession and Canada's first since the pandemic.