UK claimant count rises much less than expected in Oct

The number of Britons claiming jobless benefit in October rose by its smallest amount in 18 months, while the number of people in work rose for the first time in over a year, official data showed on Wednesday.

The Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday claimant count unemployment rose by 12,900 last month, well below forecasts for an increase of 20,000.

The number of people without a job on the wider ILO measure rose by 30,000 in the three months to September to 2.461 million, the smallest rise since March-May 2008. That left the jobless rate at 7.8 percent, confounding expectations for a rise to 8.0 percent.

The figures will raise hopes that the worst of the recession has passed and that unemployment will peak at a lower level than previously feared.

Indeed, the number of people in work actually rose by 6,000 in the three months to September, the first increase since May-July 2008.

However, earnings growth remained subdued, rising by just 1.2 percent including bonuses in the three months to September, down from a 1.6 percent rise in the three months to August and well below expectations for a smaller easing to 1.5 percent.