Forex Today: US Dollar retreats as markets gear up for presidential election

Here is what you need to know on Monday, November 4:

The US Dollar (USD) stays under heavy selling pressure to start the new week as investors gear up for the presidential election on Tuesday. Factory Orders for September will be the only data featured in the US economic docket on Monday. During the European trading hours, November Sentix Investors Confidence data from the Eurozone and revisions to October HCOB Manufacturing PMI for Germany and the Eurozone will be watched closely by market participants.

The USD Index ignored the disappointing labor market data on Friday and gained 0.4% on the day. The index, however, opened with a bearish gap and extended its slide to a fresh two-week low below 104.00. Meanwhile, US stock index futures trade marginally higher in the European morning on Monday.

Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) in the US rose by 12,000 in October, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. This reading followed the 223,000 increase (revised from 254,000) recorded in September and missed the market expectation of 113,000 by a wide margin. "It is likely that payroll employment estimates in some industries were affected by the hurricanes; however, it is not possible to quantify the net effect on the over-the-month change in national employment, hours, or earnings estimates because the establishment survey is not designed to isolate effects from extreme weather events," the BLS explained in its press release.

EUR/USD snapped a four-day winning streak on Friday but ended the week in positive territory. The pair benefits from the broad-based selling pressure surrounding the USD early Monday and rises toward 1.0900.

GBP/USD gathers bullish momentum to start the new week and rises toward 1.3000, where it met resistance in the previous week. 

Following Thursday's sharp decline, USD/JPY reversed its direction on Friday and gained more than 0.6%. The pair stays on the back foot on Monday and fluctuates deep in the red at around 152.00.

Gold declined sharply after setting a new record-high and lost nearly 2% in the second half of the week. XAU/USD holds steady early Monday and trades near $2,740.

During the Asian trading hours, the data from Australia showed that the TD-MI Inflation Gauge, released by Melbourne Institute, rose to 3% on a yearly basis in October from 2.6% in September. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will announce monetary policy decisions early Tuesday and it's expected to leave the policy rate unchanged at 4.35%. AUD/USD keeps its footing following a bullish opening to the week and trades near 0.6600.