UK unemployment rate hits 4.0% as wage growth slows
Official data released on Tuesday revealed that Britain's unemployment rate and wage growth have decreased, reinforcing analyst predictions of an upcoming interest rate cut by the Bank of England next month.
According to the Office for National Statistics, the unemployment rate fell to 4.0 per cent in the three months to the end of August, down from 4.1 per cent in the previous three months ending in July.
The ONS also reported that the annual growth in employees' average regular earnings declined to 4.9 per cent during the reporting period, marking the lowest level in over two years.
Capital Economics research group's UK economist, Ashley Webb, highlighted that the latest report further supports the widespread anticipation of a 0.25 percentage point interest rate cut by the Bank of England at the November policy meeting.
In September, the BoE refrained from consecutive interest rate cuts at its policy meeting. In August, the central bank had reduced its key rate for the first time since early 2020 from 5.25 per cent, which was a 16-year high, as inflation returned to normal levels.
On Wednesday, the ONS is scheduled to release Britain's latest inflation reading, with expectations that the annual level will have dropped below the Bank of England's target rate of 2.0 per cent.
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