Soft US Jobs Data Paves Way for September Fed Cut

• US payrolls data disappointed, with only 22,000 jobs added in August compared with expectations of 75,000. Prior months were also revised down by a further 21,000, adding to the softer picture.
• The unemployment rate nudged higher to 4.3 percent, reinforcing the signal of a cooling labour market.
• Markets responded by leaning further toward Fed easing, with close to 27bp of cuts priced for September and around 69bp expected by year end.
• US Treasuries yields fell sharply on Friday, with the 10 year Treasury down 10bp to 4.08 percent and the 2 year yield lower by 8bp at 3.51 percent.
• Locally, the calendar is light this week with no major data due, so global headlines will be the key driver of direction.