Britain’s unemployment rate rose for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown began in March, official data showed on Tuesday.

The unemployment rate increased to 4.1% in the three months to July from 3.9% in the April-June period, the Office for National Statistics said.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected the unemployment rate to rise to 4.1%.

However, a fall in the number of people in employment was less severe than expected at 12,000, compared with a median forecast for a fall of 125,000 in the Reuters poll.