Barclays falls on lower profit
CAB Payments down over 70
UK Employment falls again in three months to August
FTSE 100 down 0.6, FTSE 250 off 0.4

Oct 24 Reuters Britain39;s benchmark FTSE 100 dropped for a fifth straight session on Tuesday mainly due to underwhelming earnings report, led by Barclays after posting a lower quarterly profit.

The exporterheavy FTSE 100 was down 0.6, while the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 0.4 by 0837 GMT.

Barclays shares dropped 6.8 to the bottom of FTSE 100 after the British lender39;s thirdquarter profit dipped from a year ago on sliding revenues in its investment bank.

The banks index dropped 1.9, leading sectoral declines.

Meanwhile, data showed Britain39;s unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 in the three months to August. However, the big picture remained of a softening labour market with the number of people in jobs falling again, potentially helping the Bank of England keep interest rates on hold in its upcoming policy meeting.

According to the vast majority of economists polled by Reuters, the BoE is likely done with policy tightening and will leave the Bank Rate at 5.25 in its Nov. 2 meeting.

Elevated inflation and the BoE39;s stream of rate hikes take their toll on the jobs market, said Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor.

Businesses are clearly becoming more cautious about their hiring plans, while finding jobs is becoming more challenging for workers.

Another survey showed British businesses…