USD SLIPPED AND TECHNICALLY UNDER PRESSURE

The dollar slipped from a three-month high on Friday, weighed down by some of the weaker details of what was an overall strong U.S. non-farm payrolls report for June. Despite Friday's slide, the dollar was still poised to end the week on a positive note, with a 0.6% gain. Going into the report, the dollar traded higher on the expectation of a robust jobs number. Data showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls did beat expectations, increasing by 850,000 jobs last month after rising 583,000 in May. But the unemployment rate rose to 5.9% from 5.8% in May, while the closely-watched average hourly earnings, a gauge of wage inflation, rose 0.3% last month, lower than the consensus forecast for a 0.4% increase. The dollar index fell 0.2% to 92.421, after earlier hitting a three-month high of 92.759. The greenback has strengthened broadly since the U.S. Federal Reserve surprised markets last month by signalling it could tighten policy earlier than expected to curb inflation. The euro was slightly higher on the day at $1.1854, after trading lower before the jobs report. Against the yen, the dollar slid 0.4% to 111.185 yen. On Thursday, the greenback hit a 15-month peak versus the Japanese currency.

EUR/USD short-term technical outlook

The EUR/USD pair is still under selling pressure and could reach lower lows in the days ahead. The daily chart shows that sellers surged around a critical Fibonacci resistance around 1.1920, while the pair reached lower lows and lower highs for five consecutive days. The 20 SMA heads firmly lower, crossing below the longer ones, a sign of persistent weakness, while technical indicators consolidate near oversold readings. Near-term technical readings reflect the latest bounce, but given that moving averages maintain their bearish slopes in the 4-hour chart, the risk remains skewed to the downside.