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Post by bot on Jan 22, 2014 21:56:32 GMT -5
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Unemployment in the U.K. dropped to 7.1% in the three months to November, inching closer to the Bank of England's threshold of 7% for considering raising interest rates. In the three months to October, the joblessness rate was 7.4% and analysts expected the November reading to come in at 7.3%. The labor market in the U.K. has been closely watched since last summer, when the BOE provided its first forward guidance and said it would keep rates at a record low until the unemployment rate drops at least to 7%. The central bank said in minutes from its January meeting -- also out on Wednesday -- that even if the 7% unemployment threshold were to be reached in the near future, there is no immediate need to raise the interest rate. The minutes also showed that the policy-setting committee voted unanimously to keep the benchmark interest rate at 0.5% and make no changes to its monetary-easing program. The pound jumped after the data, trading at $1.6536.
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