Average earnings excluding bonuses in the United Kingdom edged higher in August 2026, rising to 3.7% from 3.5% in July 2026. The latest data, updated on 20 October 2026, signal a modest acceleration in underlying wage growth.
The move from 3.5% to 3.7% suggests that pay pressures, stripped of often-volatile bonus components, are firming slightly. This indicator is closely watched by markets and policymakers as a gauge of underlying labour-cost trends, which can feed into inflation dynamics and influence expectations for future monetary policy decisions.
With regular pay growth ticking up, investors and analysts will be assessing whether this marks the start of a more sustained upward trend in wages or a short-term fluctuation during late summer hiring and pay-review cycles.
