Bank of England survey shows firms expect lower price and wage growth

Bank of England survey shows firms expect lower price and wage growth

The Bank of England's latest Decision Maker Panel survey indicates that firms expect a moderation in both their own-price and wage growth over the next year. The December 2025 survey also showed a slight improvement in realised employment growth.

Inflation expectations ease

Firms reported their realised annual own-price growth fell by 0.1 percentage points to 3.7% in the three months to December.

Year-ahead expected own-price inflation also declined by 0.1 percentage points to 3.6%.

Year-ahead CPI inflation expectations remained stable at 3.4%, with three-year-ahead expectations at 2.9%.

Wage growth moderates, employment stabilizes

Annual wage growth reported by firms was 4.4% in the three months to December, down 0.1 percentage points from the previous period.

Expected year-ahead wage growth also fell slightly by 0.1 percentage points to 3.7%.

Realised annual employment growth improved to -0.4% from -0.7% in November, though year-ahead expectations for employment growth weakened slightly to -0.4%.