The British pound sterling, paired with the US dollar, has retreated. The current GBPUSD exchange rate stands at 1.2488.
Statistics published yesterday revealed that the unemployment rate in the UK rose to 4.3% in July, in line with expectations. The previous month, the figure stood at 4.2%. Average wages in the country for the three months ending in July increased by 8.5%, surpassing the forecasted growth of 8.2%, and the earlier calculation of 8.4%.
In August, the number of jobless claims increased by 0.9 thousand, contrary to the forecasted expansion of 17.1 thousand. In July, this indicator was estimated at 7.3 thousand.
Overall, the British labour market appears to be robust, with ongoing wage increases and job creation, effectively countering inflationary pressures. While this performance is strong and commendable, the Bank of England may not view it in the same light. With such confident employment data, the BoE might decide to continue raising the interest rate.
Today the UK will release a new set of statistics, this time related to industrial production and its components.