Women, Self Employed Drive Robust Wage Dn...>

UK DATA: Women, Self Employed Drive Robust Employment; Wage Growth Dn 

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-UK Q4 Employment +180,000  vs +208,000 Sept-Nov 

-UK Q4 LFS Jobless Rate 3.8% vs 3.8% Sept-Nov 

-UK Dec jobless rate 3.8% vs 3.9% in Nov (experimental statistic) 

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UK job growth continued apace in the final quarter of 2019, with women 

accounting for more than 80% of additional employment. Females now make 

up 47.4% of all workers, a joint record high. Self-employed roles 

comprised 71,000 new jobs, accounting for a record-high 15.3% of all 

employment. Vacanacies increased by 7,000 to 810,000, after series of 

declines. The experimental jobless rate declined to 3.8% in December, 

from a downwardly-revised 3.9% in November. That's well below the  

equilibrium unemployment rate of 4.25%, according to minutes of the Bank 

of England's Monetary Policy Committee meeting in late January, 

suggesting the new jobs skew toward the lower end of the pay scale.