Sharjah 24 – Reuters: The dollar was on track for its biggest daily percentage drop in six weeks on Friday on the heels of the December U.S. jobs report that missed expectations, but it was still seen as strong enough to keep the Federal Reserve's tightening path intact.

The dollar index fell 0.546% at 95.734, and was poised for its biggest drop since Nov. 26, when concerns about the Omicron COVID-19 variant began to rattle markets. Even with Friday's weakness, the dollar was still on track for a slight weekly gain, its first in three weeks.

The Labor Department said nonfarm payrolls rose by 199,000 last month, well short of the 400,000 estimate. But analysts noted underlying data in the report appeared sturdier, with the unemployment rate falling to 3.9% against expectations of 4.1% while earnings rose by 0.6%, indicating tightness in the labor market.

The report also increased expectations the Fed will begin to hike interest rates at its March meeting, with futures on the federal funds rate implying a 90% chance of a hike, up from 80% on Wednesday.

On Wall Street the benchmark S&P 500 SPX> was modestly lower, while the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note touched 1.80%, its highest since January 2020.

Despite the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, investors have increasingly viewed it as unlikely to derail the global economy or more aggressive actions by central banks.