-David Cameron, UK Prime Minister
UK jobless claims dropped to the lowest level in 40 years, while pay growth accelerated, providing Prime Minister David Cameron with a powerful advantage ahead of the general election in May. The Claimant count declined for the 29th consecutive month in March to 772,400, marking the lowest level since 1975, according to the Office for National Statistics. Jobless claims dropped 20,700 last month, taking the rate to 2.3%. As a result, Britain's unemployment rate slid to 5.6% in the three months to February down from 5.8% in the quarter to November, the lowest rate since June 2008.
Meanwhile, wage growth also continued to strengthen. Average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, rose by 1.8% in the quarter to February, compared with a gain of 1.6% in the three months to January. In February alone, regular pay picked up by 2.2% compared with the same period a year ago. The data also showed private sector regular pay increased by 2.2% in the quarter to February compared with a year earlier. The single month reading showed growth of 2.6%. Including bonus payments, annual earnings growth eased back to 1.7% in the three months to February, after the 1.9% growth in January. This compares with zero inflation in February, which has been caused by a precipitous fall in oil prices.
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