mpc.theyserveforyou.com

mpc: 6 The Halifax index had increased by 2.4% in the three months to November compared with the previous three months. And provisional data from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' (RICS) survey balance for house price inflation for November had suggested a pick-up from October's figure of +7. In terms of housing market activity, particulars delivered had risen slightly to 113,000 in October from 112,000 in September, but had remained below the average of 127,000 in the first half of the year. The House Builders' Federation net reservations balance had risen to -13 in October from -20 in September. A26 Total industrial production had fallen by 0.2% in October. Within this, manufacturing sector output had fallen by 0.1%, mining and quarrying sector output had fallen by 4.1%, and utilities sector output had grown by 2.8%. The CBI Monthly Industrial Trends output balance and total order book balance surveys had been little changed in November compared with the previous month, at +1 and -17 respectively. The CIPS business activity index for services had been 57.0 in November, unchanged from October. In manufacturing, the CIPS purchasing managers index had been 51.3 in November, close to its average since the survey began in 1991, and up from 49.8 in the previous month. And the CIPS construction activity index had fallen slightly in November, to 54.3 from 55.7 in October.

IV

Labour market

A27 Labour Force Survey (LFS) data for 2000 Q3 had used updated population estimates to weight individual responses, but historical LFS data had not yet been revised to be consistent with the new population figures. As a result, the levels and growth rates of the main LFS variables in Q3 had been increased relative to those for earlier quarters. Figures expressed in terms of rates or ratios (such as the unemployment rate) had been largely unaffected by the change. The largest impact had been on the levels of (and changes in) employment and inactivity. A28 According to the published figures, LFS employment growth had eased to 0.2% in Q3, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous quarter. However, adjusting for the impact of the new population estimates, employment growth had weakened by rather more. The working-age employment rate had increased by 0.1 percentage points to 74.7%. Increased employment had been more than accounted for by higher part-time employment. As a proportion of total employment, part-time employment had risen to 25.2% in Q3, up 0.3% compared with the previous quarter. But