Starting salaries advertised in the UK reached the highest level in two years in April and there were the most job vacancies since December, suggesting some recovery in the labour market, reports Reuters, citing research from Adzuna. The research showed advertised annual salaries had increased each month since October 2022, reaching an average of £37,658 in April, up 2.9% on a year earlier. This was still slightly below the £37,898 average in April 2021, when they were the highest since Adzuna's records began in 2016.

Tony Wilson, director of the Institute for Employment Studies, said the Adzuna figures potentially reflected continued strong demand in the economy rather than chronic shortages and jobs going unfilled."Combined with pretty modest growth in advertised salaries, this also suggests that some of the inflationary pressures from the labour market may be starting to ease," Wilson said.

The Bank of England, which increased interest rates to 4.5% in May and is expected to raise Bank Rate further, is closely monitoring inflation pressure in the jobs market but has said it expects pay growth to slow.