US Treasury Sec. Mnuchin: Unemployment rate will get worse

While speaking in the Fox News Sunday program. US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin warned that the labor market scenario in the US may get worse before it gets better.

Key quotes

“The reported numbers are probably going to get worse before they get better.”

“The White House was talking about more fiscal measures to ease the economic pain from the pandemic.”

“The federal government did not want to bail out states that were poorly managed.”

“The White House is pushing for a payroll tax cut.”

His comments come after the country’s unemployment rate surged to 14.7% in April due to the coronavirus outbreak induced lockdowns.

Market reaction

The greenback remains unperturbed by Mnuchin’s comments, the US dollar index attempts a bounce on hopes of a quicker economic upturn and most major economies re-open.

The DXY trades at 99.70, recovering from last Friday’s slump to 99.10 lows.