Investing.com - The number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the U.K. declined less-than-expected in October, while the country’s jobless rate held steady at a six-year low, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the U.K. Office for National Statistics said that the claimant count fell by a seasonally adjusted 20,400 last month, compared to expectations for a decline of 24,900 people.
September’s figure was revised to a drop of 18,400 people from a previously reported decline of 18,600.
The report also showed that the rate of unemployment held steady at 6.0% in the three months to September, compared to expectations for a reading of 5.9%.
GBP/USD was trading at 1.5920 from around 1.5906 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7826 from 0.7835 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets remained lower. London’s FTSE 100 lost 0.4%, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 shed 0.9%, France's CAC 40 declined 0.7%, while Germany's DAX slumped 0.95%.