U.K. Wage Growth Beats Forecasts But Still Lags Inflation
- Unemployment rate falls to 4.4%, lowest level since 1975
- BOE says the worst of consumer squeeze may soon pass
U.K. unemployment fell to 4.4 percent in the second quarter, the lowest level since 1975. Wage growth topped analysts' estimates at 2.1 percent, but still lagged inflation. Tim Haywood, investment director at GAM Investment, examines the wage data on 'Bloomberg Surveillance.' (Source: Bloomberg)
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The squeeze on U.K. consumers continued in the second quarter, when the fastest inflation in four years ate into workers’ income.
Basic wages rose an annual 2.1 percent in the three months, lagging behind a surge in price growth driven by the pound’s decline in the wake of the Brexit vote. That left real incomes down 0.5 percent year-on-year, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday.