UK earnings outpace inflation again, jobless rate falls

British pay growth outstripped inflation by the most in several years in December, helped in large part by bonuses, giving many households a boost ahead of parliamentary elections in May. Average weekly earnings, including bonuses rose 2.4 percent in annual terms in the month of December. The Office for National Statistics also said on Wednesday that Britain's unemployment rate fell to 5.7 percent, its lowest level in more than six years. A Reuters poll of economists had expected the unempl