UK Jobless Rate Rises, Wage Growth Remains High

RTTNews | 9h 26min ago

(RTTNews) - The UK unemployment rate rose slightly in the third quarter and wage growth remained high but falling vacancies signals a decrease in pay pressures, official data showed on Tuesday.

The unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent in the September to November period, as expected, from 4.3 percent in the three months to October, the Office for National Statistics revealed.

Average earnings excluding bonuses grew 5.6 percent in three months to November from a year ago, slightly faster than the forecast of 5.5 percent.

Earnings including bonuses also climbed 5.6 percent annually, which was in line with expectations.

The claimant count held steady at 4.6 percent in December. The number of people claiming unemployment benefits increased 7,000 from November.

Payrolled employment decreased by 47,000 from the previous month and fell 8,000 on year to 30.3 million in December.

In the December quarter, the number of vacancies decreased 24,000 on the quarter to 812,000. Vacancies declined for the 30th consecutive period.

ING economist James Smith said plenty of evidence shows that the jobs market is continuing to cool down.

It looks like policymakers are on course to continue gradually taking rates lower and probably more rapidly than markets now expect, the economist added.

British Chambers of Commerce Deputy Director Public Policy Jane Gratton said the labour market continues to be challenging for many businesses, with wage growth continuing to rise as firms compete for skilled workers.

"This is a concern as they face a significant rise in employment costs in April," said Gratton.

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