U.K. Unemployment Rises at Slower Pace

There was further evidence the worst of the UK recession may be over, with the claimant count measure of unemployment rising at its slowest pace in 10 months & April's increase revised downward, official data showed. The Office for National Statistics reported the jobless claimant count rose 39,300 in May, compared with April's 49,600 rise. The claimant count rose by 136,000 back in Feb. Economists forecast the claimant count would rise by 65,000 in May. April's claimant count rise was originally reported at 57,000. The rise in the claimant count was the 15th straight monthly rise & pushed the overall number of people claiming benefits to 1.54M, its highest level since July 1997. The claimant count jobless rate rose to 4.8% of the workforce from a downwardly revised 4.6% in April. It was last higher in Oct. '97. The British pound was buoyed by the data but briefly. The pound rose by 0.3% against the dollar to trade at $1.6435, as the euro fell by 0.3% to trade at