Recession fears as Britain losing jobs at fastest pace since pandemic

Unemployment rate of 4.2% highest in almost two years and up from as little as 3.5% a year ago when companies were hiring rapidly after the end of the covid lockdowns

Some economists are now concerned the rise in unemployment threatens to tip an already stagnant economy into recession.

The British economy lost jobs again in the three months to the end of August, marking the longest drop in employment since the depths of the coronavirus pandemic and a sign inflationary pressures may be abating.

Employment fell 82,000 in June to August after a 133,000 drop in the period from May through July, Britain's Office for National Statistics said. It was third consecutive three-month period in which employment had fallen compared to the previous three months, the worst stretch since early 2021.