UK Unemployment Rate drops further to 4.1% in November vs. 4.2% expected

• UK claimant count change arrived at -43.3K in December.
• The unemployment rate in the UK dropped to 4.1% in November.
• The UK wages excluding bonuses fell to 3.8% YoY 3.8% expected.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Tuesday, the UK’s official jobless rate surprised markets to the upside, by arriving at 4.1% in November vs. the previous 4.2% and 4.2% expected while the claimant count change showed a smaller than previous drop last month from the previous.

The number of people claiming jobless benefits fell to 43.3K in December when compared to -49.8K booked previously. The claimant count rate came in at 4.7% vs. 4.8% last.

The UK’s average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, arrived at 3.8% 3Mo/YoY in November versus +4.3% last and +3.8% expected while the gauge including bonuses came in at 4.2% 3Mo/YoY in November versus +4.9% previous and +4.2% expected.

Key points (via ONS)

‘There were 184,000 more people in payrolled employment in December 2021 when compared with November 2021.”

‘The UK vacancies rose to a new record of 1,247,000 in three months to Dec.”

GBP/USD reaction

GBP/USD keeps the rebound intact at around 1.3650 on the upbeat UK jobs report.

The spot was last seen trading at 1.3646, modestly flat 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).