BREAKING: GBPUSD jumps to 1-week high after UK jobs data

UK jobs market report for June was released today at 7:00 am BST. Report was expected to show a weakish 3-month/3-month employment change as well as an up-tick in unemployment rate. Moreover, headline average weekly earnings growth was expected to slow considerably as well.

Actual report turned out to be a big positive surprise. 3-month/3-month employment change beat expectations massively and showed a 97k increase, while the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 4.2%. Headline earnings growth slowed more than expected, while core earnings growth matched expectations.

GBP jumped following the release, with GBPUSD climbing to a 1-week high.

UK jobs market data for June

• Employment change (3month/3month): +97k vs +3k expected (+19k previously)
• Unemployment rate: 4.2% vs 4.5% expected (4.4% previously)
• Average weekly earnings: 4.5% YoY vs 4.6% YoY expected (5.7% YoY previously)
• Average weekly earnings (excluding bonuses): 5.4% YoY vs 5.4% YoY expected (5.7% YoY previously)

Source: xStation5