U.S. non-farm payrolls added 130,000 jobs in January, far exceeding the expected 65,000, with the unemployment rate falling to 4.3%. Short-term employment data remains strong, further reinforcing the expectation that the Federal Reserve will pause interest rate cuts for an extended period.

However, the total new jobs added in 2025 have been sharply revised downward from 584,000 to 181,000, averaging only about 15,000 per month, the weakest level since 2003.

Amid mixed data showing one strong and one weak indicator, the dollar remains volatile but relatively stable, with limited impact on gold prices. Market attention has now shifted to the CPI data to be released this Friday, which could directly determine the future direction of rate cut expectations.