Foreign Exchange Market Update

July 2, 2026

United States

First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly edged modestly lower in the week ending on June 27th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The initial jobless claims slipped to 215,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's level of 216,000.

The report said the less volatile four-week moving average also dipped to 222,000, a decrease of 2,500 from the previous week's revised average of 224,500. Meanwhile, the Labor Department said continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment benefits, crept up by 2,000 to 1.814 million in the week ending on June 20th. The four-week moving average of continuing claims also rose to 1,803,000, an increase of 10,750 from the previous week's average of 1,792,250.

A more closely watched Labor Department report, which was also released on Thursday, showed that employment in the U.S. had increased in June. The report said non-farm payroll employment rose by 57,000 jobs in June after jumping by 129,000 jobs in May. 07/02/2026 - 10:49:00 (RTTNews)

Reflecting a sharp pullback in new orders for durable goods, the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing a steep drop in new orders for U.S.-manufactured goods in May. The Commerce Department said factory orders slumped by 1.3 in May after spiking by 5.3 in April.

The pullback in factory orders came as orders for durable goods plunged by 4.5 in May after soaring by 8.5 in April. Orders for transportation equipment lowered, plummeting by 14.0 in May after skyrocketing by 22.4 in April. Meanwhile, the report said orders for non-durable goods shot up by 2.2 in May after jumping by 1.9 in April.

The Commerce Department also said shipments of manufactured goods increased by 1.6 in May, while inventories of manufactured goods rose by 0.2. With shipments climbing much more than inventories, the inventories-to-shipments ratio dipped from 1.49 in April to 1.47 in May. 07/02/2026 - 11:06:00 (RTTNews)

Eurozone

Euro traded at 1.1444 against USD at 9:00 AM PST

The euro area’s unemployment rate remained unchanged in May. The jobless rate came in at 6.2 in May, unchanged from April but down from 6.3 in May 2025. Unemployment fell by 55,000 to 10.986 million in May. Compared with last year, unemployment decreased to 158,000. The youth unemployment rate remained stable at 14.7 in May.

The EU unemployment rate also remained unchanged in May, at 5.9. The rate stood at 6.0 in the same period last year. The EU's youth unemployment rate rose marginally from 15.1 in the previous month to 15.2. 07/02/2026 - 06:41:00 (RTTNews)

Spain's unemployment fell below 2.3 million in June for the first time since early 2008. The number of unemployed fell by 28,739 from the previous month to 2.29 million in June. It had not fallen below 2.3 million since January 2008.

Unemployment declined across all economic sectors in June. The service sector reported the largest decrease with 28,498 fewer unemployed workers, while industry recorded a decrease of 2,829. Construction and agriculture sectors experienced smaller reductions, declining by 1,326 and 384 unemployed workers.

Further, unemployment among young people aged below 25 decreased by 5,155 compared to May. Youth unemployment totaled 159,800, the lowest in the historical series. 07/02/2026 - 05:29:00 (RTTNews)

Italy's unemployment rate decreased marginally to a series record low in May. The seasonally adjusted jobless rate stood at 5.0, down from April's 5.1. In the corresponding month last year, the unemployment rate was 6.5.

The number of unemployed people decreased by 22,000 to 1.278 million in May compared to a month ago. The employment rate dropped from 63.1 to 63.0, reflecting a decline of 22,000 employed people compared to the previous month. 07/02/2026 - 05:15:00 (RTTNews)