London, Aug 15 (EFE).- The unemployment rate in the United Kingdom rose to 4.2% in the three months between April and the end of June, 0.3 percentage points more than in the previous quarter, reported this Tuesday the National Statistics Office (ONS).
The official body indicated that the increase between April and June 2023 was driven by people who have remained unemployed for at least a period of six months.
The employment rate fell to 75.7%, compared to 76% previously, while the economic inactivity rate was 20.9%, compared to 20.8% previously, according to data released today.
Job vacancies fell by 66,000 to 1.02 million, while the average percentage of salary increases stood at 7.8%, the highest since 2001.
The rise in salaries responds to the rise in year-on-year inflation, which stands at 7.9%.
The Bank of England recently raised interest rates from 5 to 5.25%, the highest level in 15 years, to control inflation. This was the fourteenth consecutive rise in the price of money, decided at the end of the meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee of the English entity, whose objective is to try to keep inflation at 2%.
The bank expects inflation to fall this year and can reach its 2% target only at the beginning of 2025. EFE
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