Jobless claims in the U.K. rose 138.4K to 1.39M in February, marking the biggest drop in employment since record keeping began in 1971, and raised the claimant count rate to 4.3% from a revised reading of 3.9% in the previous month. Meanwhile, a separate report showed that average earnings including bonuses slipped to 1.8% during the three-months to January from a previous reading of 3.1%, which is the lowest level since 1991, and labor conditions are likely to deteriorate further throughout the first half of the year as the economy faces a deepening recession. The data foreshadows a dour outlook for private-spending as workers face a weakening labor market, and as businesses continue to slash their work force in an effort to reduce costs, economic activity is likely to weaken further as households and firms turn increasingly pessimistic towards the economy.
