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British unemployment rate maintains at 5.5 pct in April

Xinhua, June 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

British unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent in the three-month to April 2015, the same as the three-month to March 2015, staying the lowest level since mid 2008, official data showed Wednesday.

The unemployment rate is in line with the market estimation consensus.

There were 1.81 million unemployed people in the three-month to April 2015, down by 43,000 for the three months to January 2015, and 349,000 less than a year earlier, data showed by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The employment rate for those aged from 16 to 64 over the same period was 73.4 percent, up slightly from the three months to January 2015 (73.3 percent), figures showed.

There were 31.05 million people in employment aged 16 and over, 114,000 more than for the three-month to January and 424,000 more than for a year earlier, said the statistics department of the government.

In the same period, British employees' total pay both including and excluding bonuses increased by 2.7 percent compared with a year earlier, noted ONS.

Official figure showed that British consumer prices index (CPI) increased merely by 0.1 percent in the year to May 2015.

Claims for unemployment benefit, however, fell by 6,500 to totally 797,800 in May 2015 from the previous month. Compared with a year earlier, it was down by 290,900, data also showed. Endit