Scottish unemployment falls while UK rate rises to highest since pandemic
Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the unemployment rate for people aged 16 and over in Scotland was 3.7% between March and May this year.
This was 0.5% down on the previous quarter and below the UK wide rate of 4.7%.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate of UK unemployment increased to 4.7% in the three months to May, from 4.6% in three months to April – marking the highest level since June 2021.
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The employment rate for those aged 16 to 64 was 74.9%, which was 0.6% up on the previous quarter.
The figures showed that in Scotland there were 2,674,000 people aged 16 and over in employment between March and May this year.
There were 102,000 people aged 16 and over out of work in Scotland in the latest quarter, according to the figures.
Meanwhile, average earnings growth, excluding bonuses, slowed to 5% in the period to May to its lowest level for almost three years.
The ONS said the figures point towards further pressure in the UK labour market, days after the governor of the Bank of England warned that the bank is prepared to make larger interest rate cuts if it sees that the job market slowing.
ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown said: 'The labour market continues to weaken, with the number of employees on payroll falling again, though revised tax data shows the decline in recent months is less pronounced than previously estimated.
'Pay growth fell again in both cash and real terms, but both measures remain relatively strong by historic standards.'
The rise in unemployment in the UK is worse than economists had expected, having predicted that the jobless rate would remain at 4.6% for the month.
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Nevertheless, average wage growth was slightly higher than the 4.9% predicted by economists.
But the rate of wage growth was still the weakest figure since the three months to June 2022 and represents a drop from a revised level of 5.3% in the three months to April.
Wage growth continues to outstrip inflation, reflecting a rise of 1.8% after taking Consumer Prices Index inflation into account.
Pressure in the labour market for the three months to May comes as firms swallowed significant increases in national insurance contributions and the national minimum wage in April.
Firms have also been impacted by intensifying economic uncertainty after US President Donald Trump launched a new tariff regime in April, leading to heightened global trade tensions.
The figures also showed job vacancies in the UK fell by 56,000 to 727,000 in the three months to June, compared with the previous quarter.
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