Number of people out of work falls again, but average earnings grew more slowly over the summer * Unemployment rate remains at 4.9% * Concerns that real wages are falling * Jobless total falls by 39,000... * ...but claimant count is up by 2,400 * PwC: No Brexit impact yet 5.11pm BST OVER IN GREECE, AND THERE ARE FURTHER TENSIONS BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT AND ITS CREDITORS. Reuters reports: Greece will tell its creditors it cannot comply with labour reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund as a condition of its support for the country’s third bailout, its labour minister told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday. The leftist government considers the IMF’s demand as a ban on the right of workers to negotiate wages and conditions on a collective basis. A breakdown with the IMF on the issue could jeopardise its financing of the 86 billion euro ($96 billion) bailout and could undermine overall confidence in the deal. “We want to reinstate collective bargaining because it’s the core of the European social model,” Katrougalos said. Under previous bailouts, collective bargaining has been weakened. Both the IMF and the EU say an inflexible labour force has helped to make Greece uncompetitive, contributing to its economic malaise. 4.15pm BST Still on oil Jasper Lawler, market analyst at CMC Markets, said: The price of oil erased early gains as traders resumed bearish bets on speculation that Libya will soon be in a position to begin exports again. The losses come after the American Petroleum Institute reported a build in weekly oil inventories. The price did have a brief rally after DOE data showed a surprise draw, but within half-an-hour of the data made new lows of the day. All indications are that the biggest drawdown in 17 years seen in last week’s inventory figures was an aberration. Continue reading...
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