UK jobless rate climbs to 5.0% in Nov vs. 5.1% expected, GBP/USD unfazed

UK Dec jobless claims changed +7K vs +35K expected.
The UK wages excluding bonuses rose by 3.6% YoY vs. 3.2% expected.
The unemployment rate in the UK rose to 5.0% in November.

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Tuesday, the UK’s official jobless rate rose to 5.0% in November vs. the previous 4.9% and 5.1% expected, while the claimant count change showed a smaller-than-expected increase last month.

The number of people claiming jobless benefits rose by 7K in December, against expectations +35K and 38.1K seen previously. The claimant count rate came in at 7.4% vs. 7.4% last.

The UK’s average weekly Earnings, excluding bonuses, arrived at +3.6% 3Mo/YoY in Nov versus +2.8% last and +3.2% expected while the gauge including bonuses came in at +3.6% 3Mo/YoY in Nov versus +2.8% previous and +2.9% expected.

Key points (via ONS)

Since February 2020, the number of payroll employees has fallen by 828,000.

Number of redundancies reached a record high in September to November 2020.

Number of people temporarily away from work has fallen since its peak in April and May 2020.

Number of people temporarily away from work has risen slightly in November.

Vacancies recovery has slowed in October to December 2020.

Current average pay growth rates are being impacted upwards by a fall in the number and proportion of lower-paid jobs compared with before the coronavirus.pandemic.

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

Upbeat UK jobs data keeps the pound largely unfazed, as GBP/USD remains pressured below 1.3650, down 0.25% on the day.

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.

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