Investing.com - U.S. non-farm private employment rose less than expected in July, dampening optimism over the strength of the economy and fanning hopes that Fed officials could delay raising interest rates till the very end of 2015, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, payroll processing firm ADP said non-farm private employment rose by a seasonally adjusted 185,000 last month, below expectations for an increase of 215,000.
The economy created 229,000 jobs in June, whose figure was downwardly revised from a previously reported increase of 237,000.
While not viewed as a reliable guide for the government jobs report due on Friday, July 7, it does give guidance on private-sector hiring.
Monthly jobs gains above 200,000 are seen by economists as consistent with strong employment growth.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.0916 from around 1.0880 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.5645 from 1.5629 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 124.07 compared to 124.22 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 97.79, compared to 98.01 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, the outlook for U.S. equity markets was upbeat. The Dow futures indicated a gain of 0.45% at the open, the S&P 500 futures pointed to a rise of 0.65%, while Nasdaq 100 futures tacked on 0.7%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,089.60 a troy ounce, compared to $1,087.40 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $46.04 a barrel from $45.94 earlier.