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| UK firms hold off on hiring as job vacancies fall | UK firms hold off on hiring as job vacancies fall |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| UK companies are holding back on hiring or are not replacing departing workers, sending job vacancies tumbling, official figures suggest. | UK companies are holding back on hiring or are not replacing departing workers, sending job vacancies tumbling, official figures suggest. |
| The number of available jobs fell by 63,000 between March and May while the unemployment rate ticked higher. | The number of available jobs fell by 63,000 between March and May while the unemployment rate ticked higher. |
| "There continues to be a weakening in the labour market," said Liz McKeown, director of econonic statistics at the Office for National Statistics (ONS), adding that there had been a noticeable drop in the number of people on payrolls. | "There continues to be a weakening in the labour market," said Liz McKeown, director of econonic statistics at the Office for National Statistics (ONS), adding that there had been a noticeable drop in the number of people on payrolls. |
| In April, National Insurance Contributions paid by employers increased while a rise in the minimum wage came into force. | In April, National Insurance Contributions paid by employers increased while a rise in the minimum wage came into force. |
| The estimated number of available jobs fell to 736,000 over the three months to May. | The estimated number of available jobs fell to 736,000 over the three months to May. |
| "Feedback from our vacancies survey suggests some firms may be holding back from recruiting new workers or replacing people when they move on," said Ms McKeown. | "Feedback from our vacancies survey suggests some firms may be holding back from recruiting new workers or replacing people when they move on," said Ms McKeown. |
| The figures also showed that the unemployement rate rose from 4.5% to 4.6% - the highest in almost four years and could rise higher, according to Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG UK. | |
| "It is likely that businesses will look to offset some of the rise in employment costs through a combination of reducing headcount and slowing hiring activity," she said. | |
| "Given this, we expect the unemployment rate to edge higher over the coming year." | |
| The rise in average wages slowed to 5.2% between February and April, easing from a 5.6% increase. However, it remains above the rate of inflation, which increased to 3.5% for the year to April. | |
| While Capital Economics said the UK jobs market was "not collapsing", its deputy chief UK economist Ruth Gregory said: "Most indicators show labour demand is clearly weakening." | |
| The number of people on payrolls fell by 55,000 between March and April and is forecast to drop a further 109,000 in May. | |
| Although the ONS cautioned that this is an early estimate and could change when more data from HM Revenue & Customs becomes available. |