The UK reported a surprisingly strong drop in unemployment between August and October. The unemployment figure fell 82,000 to 2.51 million. It was the biggest fall in unemployment in eleven years.

Employment in the country rose to 29.6 million, the highest amount since keeping records began in 1971.

“We see more people looking for work and actually finding work,” Mark Hoban, UK minister for work and pensions, told the BBC. “We’ve seen a big increase in full-time jobs.”

However, the Office for Budget Responsibility is taking a pessimistic outlook saying that unemployment is likely to rise to 8.2% before the end of the year and a downward trend will continue into 2013. Also, wages have decreased compared to prices and that many families need more than one job to meet their basic expenses.