UK pay growth sinks to five-year low as younger workers hit by hiring slowdown

Unemployment holds steady, but Bank of England is unlikely to be convinced by ONS data to cut interest rates

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Wage growth slowed sharply in the three months to January according to the latest snapshot of the jobs market from the Office for National Statistics.

Average earnings fell to 3.8% in the three months to January, from 4.2%, which was a larger fall than forecast by City economists. It was the slowest rate of wage growth in more than five years.