ggood morning.
There are now fewer unemployed than vacancies in the UK for the first time, underscoring the slump gripping the labor market as the cost of living crisis deepens.
The jobless rate fell to 3.7% in the first three months of the year – below economists’ forecasts and its lowest level since 1974.
But hundreds of thousands of people have left the workforce during the pandemic, meaning companies are struggling to fill their positions. They may offer higher salaries to attract talent, which in turn could fuel inflation.
That said, adjusted for inflation, the average salary excluding bonuses fell 1.9% from a year earlier – the biggest drop since 2013 – as pressure on living standards worsens.
5 things to start your day
1) The Bank of England is fighting to save its reputation – and the economy Tory assault on Threadneedle Street comes as inflation exposes cracks in its armor
2) Elon Musk suggests he could pay a lower price for Twitter Concerns grow as chief Parag Agrawal defends platform strategy against bots
3) ‘Serious breach’ puts more pressure on embattled SFO High Court ruling on mining company probe shakes fraud investigators
4) British telecoms giants accused of plotting to destroy Phones4U Bosses of EE, Vodafone and O2 had ‘grossly anti-competitive’ conversations, London High Court says
5) The Treasury is preparing a raid on the carbon tax on imports Measuring part of efforts to stop UK jobs going overseas to more emissions-tolerant countries
What happened overnight
Hong Kong shares opened higher on Tuesday despite Wall Street stocks finishing lower mainly on weak Chinese economic data.
The Hang Seng index climbed 1.3pc. The Shanghai Composite Index opened 0.09pc lower, while the mainland’s second largest stock exchange, the Shenzhen Composite Index, fell 0.4pc.
Tokyo stocks rose in morning trade, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 opening in negative territory but climbing a swift 0.2pc.
coming today
- Business : C&C Group, DCC, Land Securities, Vodafone (annual results); Britvic, Imperial Marks, Tritax EuroBox (temporary); IT fluid systems (commercial update)
- Economy: GDP (EU)unemployment rate (UK)change in the number of applicants (UK)retail (WE)
