Home Breaking: UK April Unemployment Rate beats estimates with 3.9%, GBP/USD unfazed
FXStreet News

Breaking: UK April Unemployment Rate beats estimates with 3.9%, GBP/USD unfazed

  • UK May jobless claims changed +528.9K vs +370K expected.
  • The UK wages excluding bonuses rose by 1.7% YoY vs. +1.9% expected.
  • The unemployment rate in the UK steadied at 3.9% in April.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Tuesday, the UK’s official jobless rate remained unchanged from the previous 3.9% in April, while the claimant count change showed a much bigger-than-expected increase last month.

The number of people claiming jobless benefits rose by 528.9K in May, against expectations +370K and +1032.7K (revised down from +856.5K) seen previously. The claimant count rate jumped to 7.8% vs. 5.8% last.

The UK’s average weekly Earnings, excluding bonuses, arrived at +1.7% 3Mo/YoY in April versus +2.7% last and +1.9% expected while the gauge including bonuses came in at +1.0% 3Mo/YoY in April versus +2.4% previous and +1.4% expected.

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).

FX Street

FX Street

FXStreet is the leading independent portal dedicated to the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. It was launched in 2000 and the portal has always been proud of their unyielding commitment to provide objective and unbiased information, to enable their users to take better and more confident decisions.