Economics
U.K. Jobless Claims Rise More Than Forecast as Cuts Bite
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U.K. jobless claims rose more than economists forecast in January and unemployment held at the highest rate for 16 years in the fourth quarter as the economy contracted.
The number of people claiming jobless benefits rose by 6,900 to 1.6 million, the highest since January 2010, the Office for National Statistics said today in London. The median of 24 forecasts in a Bloomberg News Survey was for a gain of 3,000. Unemployment measured by International Labour Organization methods rose by 48,000 to 2.67 million in the fourth quarter, leaving the rate at 8.4 percent, the most since the end of 1995.