Investing.com - The jobless rate in the U.K. held steady at a decade-low in February, though the claimant count unexpectedly rose, official data showed on Wednesday.
The Office for National Statistics said that the rate of unemployment held at 5.1% in the three months to February, in line with expectations.
The claimant count unexpectedly rose by a seasonally adjusted 6,700 in February, compared to expectations for a decrease of 11,300 people, and following a drop of 9.300 a month earlier, whose figure was revised from a previously reported decline of 18.000.
Meanwhile, the average earnings index, including bonuses, rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.8% in the three months to February, below forecasts for a 2.3% increase and after increasing by 2.1% in the three months to January.
Excluding bonuses, wages rose by 2.2%, in line with forecasts and following a 2.2% increase in the three months to January.
Sterling lost some ground immediately following the publication. Specifically, GBP/USD traded at 1.4362 from around 1.4368 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7910 from 0.7903 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets remained broadly lower. London’s FTSE 100 lost 0.32%, the EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.09%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.34%, while Germany's DAX gave up 0.13%.