US: Nonfarm Payrolls increased by 273K in February vs. 175K expected

• US Nonfarm Payrolls in February rose more than expected. 
• US Dollar Index failed to capitalize on the upbeat labour market data.

Nonfarm Payrolls in the US increased by 273,000 in February following January's reading of 273,000 (revised from 225,000), the data published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed on Friday. This reading came in much better than the market expectation of 175,000.

USD reaction

Despite this upbeat reading, the US Dollar Index struggled to stage a meaningful recovery and was last down 0.7% on the day at 95.90.

Further details of the publication revealed that the unemployment rate ticked down to 3.5%, Average Hourly Earnings rose 0.3% on a monthly basis and the Labor Force Participation Rate remained unchanged at 63.4%.