UK unemployment rate ticks up

Britain's unemployment rate unexpectedly edged up in the three months to December to mark a first rise in almost a year, underlining a message from the Bank of England that it is in no rush to hike borrowing costs, Reuters reported.The jobless rate edged up to 7.2 percent in the three months to December compared with 7.1 percent in November, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday.That was the first rise since the three months to February 2013 and was higher than the unchanged reading forecast by economists in a Reuters poll.Sterling fell to a session low against the dollar and the euro while gilt futures extended gains after the data. The ONS said the number of people claiming jobless benefits fell by 27,600 in January, compared with a forecast for a decline of 20,000 in a Reuters poll.Wage growth has lagged inflation over the last years, and the squeeze on incomes is a key battleground of next year's general election.The annual inflation rate was 1.9 percent in January - below the BoE's target for the first time in over four years.