UK unemployment rose and pay growth hit a six-month high towards the end of last year, creating a thorny interest rate decision for the Bank of England decision next month.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.4% in the three months to November, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed, from 4.3% in the previous period to October. This increase had been forecast by economists.
Average weekly pay growth in the same period rose to 5.6% from 5.2%, though the market had expected a larger increase of 5.7%.
Earnings growth excluding bonuses was also 5.6%, also up from 5.2% and was as the market expected.
In more timely figures, the claimant count for December 2024 increased by a very slight 0.7K on the month and is up on the year, at 1.744 million, with the rate unchanged month to month at 4.6%.
ONS said the number of payrolled employees fell in the three months to November, according to HMRC tax data, while in December there were 47,000 fewer in patrolled employment compared to November.
It was the second consecutive period that pay growth had picked up, said ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown said, noting that it was again driven by strong increases in the private sector.
Real pay growth, which excludes the effects of inflation, also increased slightly."Meanwhile, our household survey also reported a fall in the number of employees, with a rise in unemployment over the same period."
However, she said ONS continues to "advise caution when interpreting short-term movements from this survey where volatility remains a challenge, especially for more detailed breakdowns."
Numbers of job vacancies fell again, for the thirtieth consecutive period, although the total number remains slightly above its pre pandemic level, she said.