By Ed Frankl
The U.K.’s jobless rate rose slightly in the three months to July, with wage growth holding steady and now ahead of inflation, potentially easing the pressure on the Bank of England as it looks for signs of a cooling labor market.
The unemployment rate stood at 4.3% in the period, according to data from the Office for National Statistics published Tuesday, a little higher than the 4.2% recorded in the April-to-June period. It matched a forecast by a Wall Street Journal poll of economists.
Annual growth in average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, held steady at 7.8% in the three months to July, the same as the three months to June and the same as economists polled had expected. It means earnings increases outstripped annual consumer price rises, which eased to 6.8% in July.
Write to Ed Frankl at edward.frankl@wsj.com
This article was originally published by Marketwatch.com. Read the original article here.
