GBP/USD remains pressured below 1.22 as UK jobless rate ticks higher to 3.9% in Jan
- The UK wages excluding bonuses rose by 3.1% YoY vs. +3.2% expected.
- The wages including bonuses rose by 3.1% YoY vs. +3.0% expected.
- The unemployment rate in the UK rises to 3.9% in January.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Tuesday, the UK’s average weekly Earnings, excluding bonuses, arrived at 3.1% 3Mo YoY in January versus 3.2% last and 3.2% expected while the gauge including bonuses came in at 3.1% 3Mo YoY in January versus 2.9% previous and 3.0% expected.
The Kingdom’s official jobless rate rose from the previous 3.8% to 3.9% in Jan, while the claimant count change showed a smaller-than-expected increase.
The number of people claiming jobless benefits rose by 17.3K in February, against expectations +21.4K and -0.2K (revised up from +5.5) seen previously. The claimant count rate climbed to 3.5% vs. 3.4% previous.
About UK jobs
The UK Average Earnings released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) is a key short-term indicator of how levels of pay are changing within the UK economy. Generally speaking, the positive earnings growth anticipates positive (or bullish) for the GBP, whereas a low reading is seen as negative (or bearish).
GBP/USD reaction
Amid unabated US dollar demand across the board, in light of rising global recession risks due to the coronavirus outbreak, the GBP/UD pair hit a new six-month low of 1.2176.
At the press time, the cable trades at 1.2180, down 0.70% on the day.
Focus now remains on the UK PM Johnson’s "significant coronavirus economic package" to support the business community.
GBP/USD levels to watch
Author
Dhwani Mehta
FXStreet
Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.
