(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-05-03 10:26

NEW YORK -- The dollar rose against most major currencies on Friday after a government report showed that US job cuts in April were less than feared.

The US Labor Department said on Friday that 20,000 jobs were shed last month, far fewer than the 80,000 that some economists had anticipated. The national unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to 5 percent from 5.1 percent in March.

The data eased fears that the US economy was at a growing risk of slipping into a deep recession.

A report from the Commerce Department, showing a stronger-than- expected 1.4 percent rise in March factory orders, added to the positive market tone.

The greenback was also bolstered as the US Federal Reserve announced Friday that it will expand a series of efforts to deal with the global credit crisis, in coordination with European central banks.

The euro bought 1.5418 dollars in late New York trading compared with 1.5461 dollars it bought late Thursday. The British pound rose to 1.9744 dollars from 1.9737 dollars.

The dollar rose to 1.0559 Swiss francs from 1.0494 Swiss francs, and unchanged at 105.26 Japanese yen. It rose to 1.0193 Canadian dollars from 1.0187 Canadian dollars.