Weaker-than-expected US jobs figures knocked the dollar off a three-week high yesterday and gave a lift to Wall Street stock futures as the chances of a US rate hike as soon as September took a hit.

Non-farm payrolls increased by 223,000 in June, slightly below the 230,000 forecast of economists polled by Reuters.

April and May data was also revised to show 60,000 fewer jobs were added than previously reported, while the figures showed 432,000 people dropping out of the labour force taking the US unemployment rate to its lowest since April 2008.

With trades on a September Fed hike coming off in favour of a December move, the dollar sagged against the world’s major currencies to leave it at a session low against the euro , the yen and the Swiss franc

Gold fell too, hitting a three-and-a-half month low of $1,157 an ounce, while U.S. stock futures extended gains to point a 0.3-0.4 per cent rise for the main Wall Street markets when they reopen.

“All that means that this is a market-friendly number,” said Mark Luschini, Chief Investment Strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia. “It doesn’t warrant the Fed moving any sooner than previously thought, while it is still good enough to suggest that the economy’s pattern of growth remains intact.”

In addition, average hourly earnings were unchanged, taking the year-on-year increase to a tepid 2.0 per cent.

Reflecting the lower chance of a Fed hike in the coming few months, US treasury yields eased, taking German Bunds, Europe’s benchmark government bond, with them.

Europe continued to focus on Greece’s troubles though. Earlier Spain, another of the eurozone’s heavily indebted countries, saw its 10-year borrowing costs hit their highest for 10 months at a debt auction.

The euro was largely unaffected, however, and had pushed back up to $1.11 by 1315 GMT knowing the US jobs figures had cooled Fed hike expectations.