Euro (€) Currency Thread

inspector_monkfish

09:30 18Mar09 UK unemployment rises above 2 mln, claimant count spikes

LONDON, Mar 18 - The number of people claiming jobless benefit rose by the biggest amount on record last month, official data showed on Wednesday, and the wider measure of unemployment rose above 2 million for the first time since 1997.

The Office for National Statistics figures showed the claimant count rose by 138,400 in February, after an upwardly revised increase of 93,500 in January.

That was well above analysts' forecasts for a rise of 85,000 and the biggest monthly increase since comparable records began in 1971.
The internationally comparable ILO measure of unemployment rose by 165,000 in the three months to January to 2.029 million -- the highest since 1997.

The worse than expected unemployment figures will reinforce fears that Britain's economic downturn could be more painful than previously thought.
Average earnings including bonuses in the three months to January grew an annual 1.8 percent, the weakest since records began in 1991. The single month annual rate actually fell by 0.2 percent, the first fall on record.

The claimant count rate rose to 4.3 percent in February -- the highest since March 1999.

dealsearcher

:grouphug: :coffee: :grouphug: :coffee: :grouphug: :coffee:

TuftyMatt

Looks like 1 for 1 at best then for all of 09.

Those jobless numbers will be worse next month as very few will get off the list and 3,000 or more each day will join it.

The pound will be forced down and kept there on every bit of bad news, as has been shown of late, and regardless of how bad the Eurozone figures are it won't make a bit of difference.

A more expensive holiday for me this May / June but as things stand I still have a job and thats the best bit of financial news I guess anyone can wish for.

inspector_monkfish

song for the day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02zOk_LQCkY

TuftyMatt

Cant view youtube from work so give me a clue.

inspector_monkfish

TuftyMatt wrote: »

Cant view youtube from work so give me a clue.

its Don't Worry Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin...

dealsearcher

I see there is some chap on the US dollar thread worrying about changing £1000 into dollars. If only I had just that to buy in euros! :lipsrseal

I am having to deal with a transaction of around 54,000 euros. :mad:

inspector_monkfish

dealsearcher wrote: »

I see there is some chap on the US dollar thread worrying about changing £1000 into dollars. If only I had just that to buy in euros! :lipsrseal

I am having to deal with a transaction of around 54,000 euros. :mad:

what are you doing then?

inspector_monkfish

trading at 1.0650

dealsearcher

inspector_monkfish wrote: »

what are you doing then?

It's a long story. My inlaws business in Italy has gone bad because of the recession (or poor business practise). My wifes property inheritance had been remortgaged to finance the business some years ago and now she has been told if she wants to keep her inheritance (the property) she has to pay off the mortgage or it may get repocessed. Of course it would happen at a time that the pound was so weak wouldn't it?