UK jobless rate steady at 7.7 percent

LONDON — Official data show Britain's unemployment rate held steady at 7.7 percent in the three months ending April, matching the rate reported a month ago.

The Office for National Statistics said Wednesday that average weekly pay, excluding bonuses, was up 2 percent in April from a year earlier. That will allay concerns that a wage-price spiral could develop with inflation now at 4.5 percent, and will ease pressure on the Bank of England to raise its base rate.

The number of people claiming unemployment benefits rose by 20,000 to 1.49 million.