Key economic indicators

Earnings and pay

Whole economy* Manufacturing* Services* Private sector* Public sector* LRD average pay deals**

May 2004 (r) 4.1% 4.5% 3.8% 4.2% 4.3% 3.0%

June 4.1% 4.1% 4.0% 4.0% 4.5% 3.0%

July 3.3% 3.8% 2.9% 3.2% 3.7% 3.0%

August 4.1% 3.3% 4.0% 4.0% 4.5% 3.0%

September 3.9% 3.1% 3.9% 3.8% 4.4% 3.0%

October 4.2% 3.4% 4.3% 4.1% 4.8% 3.0%

November 4.6% 2.9% 4.7% 4.6% 4.7% 3.2%

December 4.3% 3.7% 4.4% 4.3% 4.4% 3.5%

January 2005 4.0% 3.1% 4.0% 3.9% 4.7% 3.4%

February 5.7% 3.7% 6.3% 5.9% 4.6% 3.4%

March (r) 3.9% 3.3% 4.4% 3.9% 4.3% 3.3%

April (r) 4.3% 3.6% 4.5% 4.0% 5.0% 3.2%

May (p) 4.2% 1.9% 4.7% 3.4% 7.8% 3.2%

Headline rate for May*** 4.1% 2.9% 4.5% 3.8% 5.6%

* % annual rise in average weekly earnings in Great Britain, seasonally adjusted, as monitored by National Statistics.

** The midpoint of pay settlements for the latest three months as monitored on the Labour Research Department's PayLine database.

*** The average of the earnings increase figures for the latest three months compared with a year earlier.

(r) revised (p) provisional

Retail prices

Retail prices index* % annual increase Consumer prices index % increase

April 2004 185.7 2.5% 1.2%

May 186.5 2.8% 1.5%

June 186.8 3.0% 1.6%

July 186.8 3.0% 1.4%

August 187.4 3.2% 1.3%

September 188.1 3.1% 1.1%

October 188.6 3.3% 1.2%

November 189.0 3.4% 1.5%

December 189.9 3.5% 1.6%

January 2005 188.9 3.2% 1.6%

February 189.6 3.2% 1.6%

March 190.5 3.2% 1.9%

April 191.6 3.2% 1.9%

May 192.0 2.9% 1.9%

June 192.2 2.9% 2.0%

Source: National Statistics

Full-time average weekly earnings by occupation

All workers £527.10

All male £581.30

All female £438.70

Managers £789.50

Professionals £701.40

Associate professionals* £562.20

Admin & secretarial £362.50

Skilled/craft £443.80

Services** £302.30

Sales £304.20

Operatives £398.60

Other manual jobs*** £320.90

* Associate professionals include technicians, nurses, police, firefighters, media/PR workers, train drivers, legal and finance workers and sales reps.

** Services means personal service occupations such as care workers, travel assistants, hairdressers, caretakers.

*** Other manual jobs refers to "elementary" occupations including farm workers, labourers, dockers, postal workers, porters, waiters, cleaners.