Britain on Wednesday unveils a new cost-of-living budget, including more help on soaring energy bills, but the government is set to stand firm on rising public sector pay demands as the country endures a fresh wave of strikes.

British finance minister Jeremy Hunt will announce on Wednesday how he will try to speed up the world's sixth-biggest economy after the shocks of Brexit, a heavy COVID-19 hit and double-digit inflation have left it lagging behind its peers.

Growth in pay in Britain - which the Bank of England is watching closely as it weighs up whether to pause its run of interest rate hikes next week - lost pace in the three months to January, official data showed on Tuesday.

Government bond yields fell on Monday as investors rushed into safe-haven assets while assessing the possible fallout from Silicon Valley Bank's (SVB) collapse amid bets on less aggressive tightening from the U.S.

Global stock markets sank Friday as banking shares faced a rout over contagion fears, while US jobs data was seen all but ensuring further aggressive interest rate hikes.

In their fifties and deciding there was more to life than work, Liz and Ian Woodbridge quit stressful jobs during the pandemic - part of a cohort of British early retirees now resisting a government call to return, despite rising living costs.

Two years after inflation began its rapid ascent, investors, economists and policymakers remain divided on the path ahead.

British finance minister Jeremy Hunt looks set to keep his grip on public finances in next week's budget, holding off on any big tax cuts or spending increases until the next election comes closer into view.

Britain's labour market showed further signs of cooling as permanent job placements fell for the fifth month in a row in February and pay growth slowed, reflecting employers' concerns about the economy, a survey published on Wednesday showed.

Australia's central bank raised its cash rate to the highest in more than a decade on Tuesday, but suggested it might be nearly done tightening as consumer spending was slowing and there was less risk of a wages-driven inflation blow-out.

Stock markets mostly rose and the dollar firmed Tuesday as traders awaited more clues on the outlook for US interest rate hikes from the head of the Federal Reserve.

Valentine's Day helped to boost British retail sales in February but volumes remained down on last year as households cut back on non-essential items, a survey published on Tuesday showed.

The U.S. dollar made a tentative start to the week on Monday as investors awaited testimony from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and looked towards for a February jobs report that will likely influence how hawkish the U.S.

Major central banks resumed their quest to ramp up interest rates in February after a tepid start to the year with price pressures proving more sticky than markets and many policy makers had hoped for.

Volkswagen faced a barrage of criticism from campaigners and its works council on Tuesday after the head of its Chinese business said he saw no sign of forced labour during a visit to the carmaker's Xinjiang plant.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is expected to announce a new deal on post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland on Monday, gambling that the reward of better ties with the European Union is worth any discord it might cause within his own party.

An agreement between Britain and the European Union over post-Brexit trade rules in Northern Ireland appears imminent.

Oil prices extended gains for a second session on Friday as the prospect of lower exports from Russia offset rising inventories in the United States and concerns over global economic activity.

Ben Harrison suggests long-term investments and reforms for the UK's employment services, as the nation's economic challenges continue to haunt employers and employees alike.

Despite an economic slowdown widely expected to morph into a recession later this year, the labour market remains tight, with upward pressure on wages.

The dollar and sterling were buoyant on Wednesday, after a surprise rebound in business activity in the United States and the UK raised the likelihood that their respective central banks would have further to go in raising interest rates.

The dollar was parked below recent peaks on Tuesday, as a three-week rally faded and traders waited on economic data to figure on whether it's warranted to push the dollar up any further.

New trending workplace phenomenon, 'Quiet Hiring', describes the practice of companies filling vacancies - without doing any actual hiring.

The dollar was on the front foot on Monday, supported by a strong run of economic data out of the United States that traders bet will keep the Federal Reserve on its monetary policy tightening path for longer than initially expected.

Australia employment surprised in January by falling for a second straight month while the jobless rate jumped to its highest since last May, a soft result that could lessen pressure for further aggressive interest rate hikes.

The dollar was broadly lower on Tuesday ahead of a keenly anticipated inflation report, while the yen strengthened as surprise pick Kazuo Ueda was nominated to be the next governor of Bank of Japan.

The London stock market struck a record peak close to 8,000 points Tuesday on a wave of European optimism before vital US inflation data.

The Bank of England will make its final increase to borrowing costs in the current cycle next month to combat double-digit inflation, according to a Reuters poll which showed the British economy is almost certainly entering a recession.

Europe's economy will grow more than previously forecast this year as it avoids a winter recession, with inflation expected to ease as gas prices have fallen, the European Commission said Monday.

Data from shadow IT shows that almost 60% of women who work in hybrid environments feel they have been excluded from the important meetings.