Deloitte's senior economist comments on ONS unemployment figures

Commenting on the latest unemployment figures, published by the ONS today, Debapratim De, senior economist at Deloitte, said:

“The headline unemployment data suggests that the furlough scheme has cushioned the initial blow to the labour market, despite the sharp contraction in activity in April. However, a well-above-average rise in jobless benefit claims in May and the downward trend in employment observed in the last two weeks of April point to a future uptick in unemployment.”

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