LONDON—U.K. unemployment unexpectedly fell at its fastest monthly pace for over 12 years in February, raising hopes that the U.K. economic recovery is gaining momentum. The Office for National Statistics on Wednesday said the widely watched claimant count measure of unemployment dropped by 32,300 in February, marking the largest monthly decrease since November 1997. That decrease, which compared with a downwardly revised gain of 5,300 in January, lowered the jobless rate to 4.9% from 5% the previous month. View Full Image Bloomberg News A job center employee advises a job seeker in Hertford, England, in January. The data could potentially boost Prime Minister Gordon Brown ahead of national elections that must be held before June. The better-than-expected news, which saw sterling jump sharply and gilts fall in early trading, surprised economists, who had forecast a modest rise of 500, and a rate of 5.1%. "The fall in the claimant count is encouraging and will grab the headlines even though the figures were a mixed bag," said Vicky Redwood, an economist at Capital Economics.[Read more...]