UK Jobless Claims Surprisingly Fell by 15K, Unemployment Rate Increased by 0.1% - 12.9.2012

Number of people Claiming Jobseeker allowance in UK unexpectedly fell in August by 15,000, the lowest since June 2010, to 1.57 million compared with a revised 13.600 decrease in July according to the Office of National statistics in UK. Claimant Count consensus for August was to increase slightly by 100 persons, also the July reading was revised from a 5,900 decrease to 13,600 less people claiming allowance. At the same time, Unemployment Rate increased by 0.1 per cent to 8.1 per cent for the last quarter, from May to July while expectations were to remain steady at 8.0 per cent. The British pound against the US dollar initially dropped slightly after the labor data to 1.6095 as the Unemployment Rate increased however quickly pared losses and rose back to 1.6121 retesting 4-month highs.