UK Unemployment Rate drops to 3.9% in January vs. 4.0% expected

The Unemployment Rate in the UK dropped to 3.9% in January.
UK Claimant Count Change arrived at -48.1K in February.
The UK wages excluding bonuses rose to 3.8% YoY in January vs. 3.7% expected.

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Tuesday, the UK’s official jobless rate arrived at 3.9% in January vs. the previous 4.1% and 4.0% expected while the claimant count change showed a bigger than previous drop last month.

The number of people claiming jobless benefits fell by 48.1K in February when compared to -31.9K booked previously. The claimant count rate came in at 4.4% last month vs. 4.6% prior.

The UK’s average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, arrived at 3.8% 3Mo/YoY in January versus +3.7% last and +3.7% expected while the gauge including bonuses came in at 4.8% 3Mo/YoY in January versus +4.3% previous and +4.6% expected.

Key points (via ONS)

There were 275,000 more people in payrolled employment in February 2022 when compared with January 2022.

The UK vacancies hit record high of 1.318 mln in three months to Feb, underscoring the labor shortage facing many employers.

GBP/USD reaction

GBP/USD is fading its rebound despite the upbeat UK employment data.

The spot was last seen trading at 1.3035, up 0.27% on the day.

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).

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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