Biggest jump in layoffs in the UK since 2009 as Covid-19 hit the job market – Live Business | Business

Good morning, and welcome to our renewed coverage of the global economy, financial markets, the eurozone, and business.

We start with bleak news from the UK job market. The number of people being laid off has jumped at the fastest pace since the financial crisis, as Covid-19 continues to hurt the UK economy hard.

Just released figures show that 156,000 people were laid off in the May-July quarter – an increase of 58,000 compared to the same period in 2019.

It’s also an increase of 48,000 compared to February and April, when the Covid-19 crisis began.

This, the Office for National Statistics says, is the biggest jump in more than a decade:

Layoffs increased by 58,000 a year, and 48,000 in the quarter, to 156,000.

These are the largest annual and quarterly increases since 2009. While layoffs are at their highest level from September to November 2012, the level is still well below that seen during the 2008 economic downturn.

Many of those jobs will be lost in the retail, hospitality, accommodation and leisure sectors, as businesses were forced to close this spring and have suffered weak sales since.

Worryingly, he comes Before The government ended the job retention scheme, forcing employers to decide whether to keep workers registered on their books or not.

Today’s jobs report also shows that the number of UK employees on the payroll fell by 695,000 in August, compared to March 2020.. This is another good indication of the damage caused by the coronavirus crisis.

This has pushed the UK’s unemployment rate up to 4.1%, which is another worrying sign. This is still quite low by historical standards, and it shows that the furl off scheme actually helped prevent an immediate spike in unemployment.

The employment rate also rose slightly to 76.5%, as more people returned to work as the lockdown eased.

But today’s jobs report also shows that younger workers are particularly stagnant.

During this quarter, there was a significant decrease in the number of young people in employment, while youth unemployment increased.

More details and feedback to follow ….

Come on today too

We have gotten a new health check in the oil market, where demand has been affected by the epidemic, as well as a recent survey of economic confidence in Germany. Industrial production numbers from the US will show whether its factories are still recovering.

Overnight, China reported a rebound in industrial production and retail sales (more on that later).

There is not much drama in the markets as European equities are expected to open flat.

schedule of work

• 7 am GMT: UK labor market report
• 9 AM GMT: The International Energy Agency oil market report
• 10 am GMT: ZEW survey of German economic confidence
• 1.30pm GMT: US Empire State manufacturing index for September
• 2.15 PM GMT: US Industrial Production for August