UK pay growth rises 6% despite job loss warnings after Reeves’s budget

Unemployment rate unchanged in three months to December, while vacancies increased in January

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UK workers' pay grew sharply in the final quarter of last year and unemployment remained unchanged despite warnings from business that Rachel Reeves's autumn budget would lead to job losses.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show annual growth in total average weekly earnings rose by 6% in the three months to the end of December, up from 5.6% for the November period and above a 5.9% forecast made by City economists.