UK unemployment rate (%)
- Prior 4.4%
- Employment change 19k v s 18k expected
- Prior -140k
- June payrolls change 16k
- Prior -3k; revised to 54k
- May average weekly earnings +5.7% vs +5.7% 3m/y expected
- Prior +5.9%
- May average weekly earnings (ex bonus) +5.7% vs +5.7% 3m/y expected
- Prior +6.0%
The jobless rate held steady in the reported month with nominal earnings also easing slightly in the three months to May. The report doesn't really change much of the picture for the BOE, even with the better revision to the payroll numbers in June. Do keep in mind as well that ONS is still trying to transition the labour market data into a more accurate survey, which still hasn't happened. So, it's tough to extrapolate too much from the data at the moment.
If anything else, real earnings continues to pick up and that might be a concern for the central bank. Here's the trend:
