THE DAILY BRIEFING
PAY RISE Salaries rose at their fastest level in at least nine years last month, according to a survey.
The study by IHS Markit recorded the quickest rise in household income since it began in 2009.
It suggests pay growth may finally be picking up and will trigger concerns of higher inflation, piling pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates.
Rate setters are not expected to take any action when they meet this Thursday, but a hike could come later this year.
TIE-UP FEARS The competition watchdog has raised concerns over a planned merger between two specialist service providers that stock bathrooms across the UK. The Competition and Markets Authority said a merger between Rentokil Initial and Cannon could result in a ‘substantial’ reduction in competition. SCOTCH STAR Inverness whisky distillery Tomatin increased sales by 25pc to £18m last year as profits jumped 14pc to £4m. Sales at the Scotch distillery were boosted by its visitor centre.
SHOPPING SPREE Shopping centre Westfield is preparing for record international visitors this summer as the latest stage of its £600m expansion gets under way. Sales from Chinese visitors have soared 13,545pc since Westfield opened ten years ago. BANK BOOST Large US banks are to dole out a record £128bn to their shareholders this year, according to Goldman Sachs analysts. PAINTS DEAL Dulux paint-maker Akzo Nobel is buying Romanian paints company Fabryo Corporation, making it the leader in Romanian decorative paints market.
FUNDING PLAN online lender Ratesetter has launched a £30m investment drive ahead of a float on the stock market. It is reportedly tapping up private backers in a funding round that would value the company at £280m.
LAW FLOAT Legal services firm Anexo Group is due to float for £110m this week. The listing will net £15m for existing shareholders including founder Alan Sellers, 57.
LOSSES WOE Investment service Crowdcube lost £4.7m in the year to September as companies looked for backers elsewhere. The firm allows start-up businesses to sell a stake directly to savers online. But the number of successful fund-raisings dropped from a year earlier, triggering a 5pc fall in revenue.