USD Strengthens as US Jobs Beat Expectations; CAD Weakens on Poor Data

The US dollar gained broadly after April non-farm payrolls surged to +115K, significantly beating the +62K consensus estimate, reinforcing expectations that the labor market remains resilient despite broader economic uncertainties. In contrast, the Canadian dollar came under pressure as Canada's employment change posted a surprising -17.7K decline versus the +15.0K expected, while the unemployment rate rose to 6.9% against the 6.7% forecast. Geopolitical tensions added to market volatility, with reports that US-Iran talks could resume next week, though Iran warned that US maritime blockade actions would be met with military response, injecting risk premium into oil-linked currencies. On the policy front, the ECB's Nagel signaled readiness to act against energy price surges, while the Fed's Goolsbee noted that inflation performance has been disappointing. USD/CAD likely found upward momentum on the divergence between US and Canadian employment data. Traders should monitor upcoming Fed commentary and geopolitical developments for near-term directional cues on dollar pairs.