07:50 AM EDT, 05/08/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Friday ahead of the release of the April employment report at 8:30 am ET.

Nonfarm payrolls are expected to rise by 65,000 after a 178,000-job gain in March, while the unemployment rate is forecast to remain at 4.3%, and hourly earnings are expected to rise by 0.3% after a 0.2% gain.

The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment reading for May is due at 10:00 am ET, at the same time as wholesale inventory data for March.

The Atlanta and St. Louis Federal Reserve banks are due to update their GDP nowcast estimates around midday, and there will be a panel discussion featuring Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, Fed Governor Christopher Waller, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee at 7:30 pm ET.

A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading into Friday:

EUR/USD rose to 1.1765 from 1.1735 at the Thursday US close, but was below a level of 1.1767 at the same time Thursday morning. There are no Eurozone data on Friday's schedule. European Central Bank Isabel Schnabel is due to speak at 12:00 pm ET. The next European Central Bank meeting is scheduled for June 11.

GBP/USD rose to 1.3607 from 1.3565 at the Thursday US close, but was below a level of 1.3611 at the same time Thursday morning. UK home prices fell in April, slowing the year-over-year rate, according to data released earlier Friday. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey is due to speak at 8:20 am ET. The next Bank of England meeting is scheduled for June 18.

USD/JPY fell to 156.7697 from 156.8673 at the Thursday US close, but was above a level of 156.3785 at the same time Thursday morning. Japan's services PMI declined in April, while wage growth slowed in March, according to data released overnight. The next Bank of Japan meeting is scheduled for June 15-16.

USD/CAD fell to 1.3646 from 1.3651 at the Thursday US close, but was above a level of 1.3627 at the same time Thursday morning. Canadian employment data for April are due to be released at 8:30 am ET. The next Bank of Canada meeting is scheduled for June 10.