In the non-farm payroll data to be released Friday 6 February, BNP Paribas' economists forecast the US economy to add 220k new jobs, the unemployment rate to fall to a new cyclical low of 5.5% in January, and for average earnings growth to have rebounded from an erratically weak reading in December. "This should support US front-end rates and the USD. Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s Humphrey-Hawkins testimony later this month should also be important in clarifying the Fed’s response to lower oil prices and potentially signalling any change to the forward guidance on policy," BNPP argues. In line with this view, BNPP ... (full story)