LONDON: British annual wage growth, excluding bonuses, ‍slowed ‍slightly to 4.5% in ​the three months to November, the Office ⁠for National Statistics said on Tuesday.

A ⁠Reuters poll ‌of economists had mostly expected regular wage growth of 4.5%, ⁠down from 4.6% in the three months to October.

The Bank of England is watching ⁠pay as a gauge ​of how long Britain's still high rate of ‍inflation is likely to last.

Financial markets ​on Monday showed that at least one 0.25 percentage-point interest rate cut was fully priced in for 2026, with a roughly two-thirds chance of two cuts.

Data published last week showed stronger-than-expected growth in the economy ⁠in November after ‌months of caution among businesses before finance minister Rachel Reeves' ‌budget at ⁠the end of that month. (Reporting by Suban ⁠Abdulla and William Schomberg)