LONDON, February 6 /PRNewswire/ --

- Take Home Pay Growth Fell by 0.6% in January, According to VocaLink

- Growth in Service Sector Fell by 1.1% Driving Overall Decline in the
Index

- Manufacturing Sector Bucks Trend With Strongest Growth Since August
2007

The VocaLink take home pay index saw a big decline this month falling to
2.8% in January having been at 3.4% at the end of December. Figures reported
last month for 2007 showed the lowest annual pay growth for two years and
this trend looks set to continue in 2008.

The service sector sub index fell from 3.3% in December to 2.2% in
January. This is likely to be as a result of the poor retail performance over
the Christmas trading period as well as the effects of the credit crunch on
bonuses in the finance sector.

In contrast, the manufacturing sub sector index saw an increase from 3.3%
to 3.5%. This is the strongest growth the sector has seen since August 2007.
When considered in conjunction with the Office for National Statistics'
manufacturing average earnings index estimates, faster pay growth in this
sector seems likely to continue in the next couple of months.

Richard Cooper, head of brand and communications at VocaLink said, "As
the figures indicated in December 2007, low take home pay growth and a
decline in consumer confidence contributed to poor Christmas trading for
retailers. This month's VocaLink take home pay index shows the lowest growth
rate since November 2006. This suggests more poor trading ahead as
individuals take home pay continues to be stretched across mortgages, fuel
and other essentials."

Douglas McWilliams, chief executive of cebr, the economics consultancy
which analyses the take home pay index for VocaLink, said "We expect the Bank
of England will continue its gradual easing of monetary policy this week
following the recent adverse economic conditions. We expect to see a quarter
point interest rate cut to 5.25%, particularly as the current low levels of
unemployment have not yet led to a significant increase in wage growth."

VocaLink processes over 90% of UK salaries and the VocaLink take home pay
index is the most timely and accurate disposable income data available in the
UK. It is based on actual payments made to employees on a three-month moving
average compared with the same measure a year earlier. It is affected by
changes in tax rates, National Insurance and other employer payments or
deductions.

The VocaLink take home pay index series
    
    Three month average annual change
    
    Year        2007                                             2008
    Month       Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec  Jan
                 %   %   %   %   %   %   %   %   %   %   %   %    %
    
    VocaLink 
     take home
     pay index  3.3 4.2 3.7 3.6 3.0 3.3 3.6 3.6 3.1 3.4 3.2 3.4  2.8
    VocaLink
     industry
     index      1.5 3.1 2.7 3.4 3.4 4.8 4.5 4.0 3.0 3.0 2.9 3.3  3.5
    VocaLink
     services
     Index      4.6 4.9 4.3 3.6 2.5 2.1 2.9 3.3 3.1 3.7 3.3 3.3  2.2



About the VocaLink take home pay index

The VocaLink take home pay index tracks monthly take-home pay levels in
the UK. It is compiled from the salary payments of a sample of FTSE 350
companies, using data captured by VocaLink which process all automated
payments in the UK including Bacs Direct Credits and Direct Debits. VocaLink
works with the centre for economics and business research (cebr) to deliver
economists, analysts and the media with a powerful and timely indicator of
pay inflation, which is an important aspect of the UK's economic performance
and one of the components that drives the Monetary Policy Committee's
interest rate policy.

LONDON, February 6 /PRNewswire/ --