Bank of England Governor Mark Carney speaks during the bank's quarterly inflation report news conference at the Bank of England in London
Britain's unemployment rate has fallen to a four-year low point, official data showed on Wednesday, putting pressure on the Bank of England to raise its record-low interest rate sooner than expected.
Unemployment in Britain dropped to 7.6 percent in the three months to September from 7.7 percent in the quarter ending in August, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in a statement.
The rate is at the lowest level since April 2009. Earnings growth however remains subdued, at only 0.8 percent in the three months to September.
The Bank of England, under new head Mark Carney, does not plan to raise its main interest rate from its record-low level of 0.50 percent at least until Britain's unemployment rate falls to seven percent, under a so-called "forward guidance" policy.
The BoE's Monetary Policy Committee gives its latest economic forecasts later on Wednesday.
The ONS added that the number of unemployed people has fallen to 2.47 million.
"The drop in the unemployment rate from 7.7 percent to 7.6 percent in the three months to September increases the likelihood that the committee will predict a faster fall to the seven percent threshold set out in its forward guidance than it expected... potentially implying an earlier rise in interest rates," said Jonathan Loynes, chief European economist at the Capital Economics consultancy.
The British pound rose in the wake of the latest data as traders bet on unemployment reaching 7.0 percent faster than forecast by the Bank of England, which is 2016.