UK unemployment rose by 118,000 in the three months to November to 2.685 million, official figures show.
The Office for National Statistics said the unemployment rate also rose to 8.4% from 8.3%, the highest since January 1996.
The number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in December rose by 1,200 to 1.6 million.
That was lower than expected and came from a lower base than had been thought.
November's claimant count increase was revised down to a rise of 200.
The number of young people without a job rose to 1.043 million in the three months to November, taking the unemployment rate in the 16-24 year-old age group to 22.3%.
The number of people in employment rose slightly in the three months to November to 29.119 million.
The figures support the picture of a flat UK economy, with other data released on Wednesday showing average weekly earnings, including bonuses, grew at just 1.9%.
The Employment Minister, Chris Grayling said the figures were worrying: "The overall level of unemployment is, and will remain, a major concern for the government.
"Despite the exceptionally difficult economic circumstances, finding work for the unemployed will remain top of the government's agenda."
'Struggling'
The number of people in work increased in the three month period to November by 18,000 to 29.1 million.
However, since then there have been a number of job loss announcements from retailers and banks, and the government's public sector cuts programme is continuing.
Ross Walker, economist at RBS, said the numbers were unlikely to improve in the coming months: "Overall, there's a slightly softer feel to these figures. The labour market is struggling and forward-looking indicators such as vacancies and hiring intentions suggest it's going to be rocky in the first half of this year."
Paul Kenny, the general secretary of the GMB union, blamed the government for the increase, saying: "This rise in unemployment was made in Downing Street. The truth is that jobs are haemorrhaging in the public and private sectors and no one in the government seems to know what to do to stop this."
On Tuesday, figures showed that the rate of inflation fell from 4.8% to 4.2% in December, which was seen as increasing the chances of another cash injection from the Bank of England when its current quantitative easing programme ends.
read more: Olympus Wealth Management
No comments:
Post a Comment