Unemployment rate in the UK 2024, by region

London had the highest unemployment rate among regions of the United Kingdom in the third quarter of 2024 at 5.3 percent, while for the UK as a whole, the unemployment rate was 4.3 percent. Four other regions also had an unemployment rate higher than the national average, while Northern Ireland had the lowest unemployment rate in this time period, at two percent. Labor market trends going into 2024After reaching historically low levels of unemployment in 2019, there was a noticeable spike in the UK unemployment rate in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. After peaking at 5.1 percent in late 2020, the unemployment rate has generally been declining, except for a small uptick in the first half of 2023. High levels of job vacancies, resignations, and staff shortages in 2022, were all indicative of a very tight labor market that year, but all these indicators have started to point in the direction of a slightly looser labor market going forward. In historical terms, especially when compared to the early 2010s, unemployment looks set to remain relatively low throughout 2024 and beyond.UK's regional economic divideWhile the North of England has some of the country’s largest cities, the sheer size and economic power of London is much larger than the UK's other urban agglomerations. Due to the size of London, the United Kingdom is one of Europe’s most centralized counties, and there is a clear divide between the economic prospects of north and south England. In 2021, for example, the gross domestic product per head in London was 56,431 British pounds, far higher than the UK average of 31,947 pounds, and significantly larger than North East England, the region with the lowest GDP per head at 23,207 pounds.

2024年第三季度，伦敦成为英国各地区中失业率最高的地区，达到5.3%，而整个英国的失业率则为4.3%。另有四个地区的失业率也高于全国平均水平。在这一时期，北爱尔兰的失业率最低，仅为2%。自2019年失业率达到历史低位之后，英国失业率在COVID-19疫情的影响下出现了显著波动。2020年底，失业率峰值达到5.1%，此后总体呈下降趋势，尽管在2023年上半年有所小幅回升。2022年，大量职位空缺、离职和人员短缺现象，均表明当年劳动力市场异常紧张。然而，这些指标目前已开始预示着未来劳动力市场将趋于略微宽松。从历史角度来看，特别是与2010年代初相比，预计2024年及以后的失业率将保持相对较低。英国的区域经济分歧同样明显。英格兰北部虽然拥有一些该国最大的城市，但伦敦的规模和经济实力远超其他城市聚集区。由于伦敦的规模，英国成为欧洲最集中的国家之一，英格兰南北之间的经济前景存在明显差异。例如，在2021年，伦敦的人均国内生产总值达到56,431英镑，远高于英国的平均水平31,947英镑，且显著高于人均GDP最低的东北英格兰地区，该地区的人均GDP为23,207英镑。