THE TAKEAWAY: UK unemployment rises -> jobless claims drop below expectations -> Sterling attempting to break above yesterday’s high
Job data from the UK showed unemployment rising to a 16-year high in November. The unemployment rate rose to 8.4%, higher than the 8.3% predicted by economists.
Meanwhile, jobless claims rose by 1,200 in November, which was a better figure than the 7,000 predicted by economists. However, this could also mean more people are giving up and not filing jobless claims.The number of people claiming jobless benefits in the UK rose to 1.6 million, the highest since early 2010.
Today’s data follows months of speculation that the UK has slipped into recession or is about to do so. Growth has been slowing down at an alarming rate, while inflation remains high due to extensive quantitative easing measures by the Bank of England.
The pound was not directly affected by the unemployment data, and remained strong on the day as currencies consolidate recent losses against the Dollar. As of this report, Cable had not yet reached yesterday’s highs at 1.5403. A break of these levels was seen to encourage further upsides in Cable.
