UK unemployment drops in March, wages higher

The jobless rate in Britain slipped by one tenth of a percentage point to 5.5 % in the three months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The claimant count fell by 12,600 in April against expectations of a 20,000 decline, while average weekly earnings rose 0.2% to 1.9% in the period, exceeding estimates that called for an unchanged reading.

At the ‘core’ level average weekly earnings rose to 2.2%, slightly higher than the 2.1% increase analysts expected.

The figure, which shows the UK has reached its highest level of employment in 45 years, will be welcomed by David Cameron, given the emphasis the Tory manifesto placed on the economic recovery.

However, data from jobs posting website CV-Library showed that some British cities were faring better than others in the labour market.

Edinburgh was the best city in the UK for jobs growth, registering a 79% year-on-year increase in job adverts in April, although only 861 were posted in Edinburgh in April out of a nationwide total of 134,232.

London saw 22,500 jobs posted last month, although at 42% the capital’s jobs growth rate fell slightly below the national average of 43%.

Birmingham was Britain’s second city in both growth rate and number of job postings, reporting a 54% increase to 7,886 jobs, while Manchester and Liverpool each saw a 47% increase in the number of adverts to 5,195 and 1,541 respectively.

“It's exciting to see that significant job growth is being experienced outside of London, especially at a higher rate than the national average,” Lee Biggins, managing director and founder of CV-Library, was quoted as saying by the Daily Telegraph.

“All too often the South of the UK is seen as the hub of job opportunities, but with these recent statistics it’s encouraging to see that growth is being witnessed all over the nation.”