The average FTSE 100 CEO will have earned more this year than the median full-time worker’s annual salary by 1 p.m. London time on Thursday, according to estimates from the High Pay Centre think tank.

The U.K.’s top bosses will surpass the milestone an hour earlier than they did in 2023, the calculations suggest, while leading bankers will exceed it on Jan. 17.

The calculations are based on the High Pay Centre’s analysis of the most recent available CEO pay figures from British blue chip companies’ annual reports, compared with government data on pay levels across the U.K. economy.

Median FTSE 100 CEO pay (excluding pension) currently stands at £3.81 million ($4.84 million), 109 times the median full time worker’s pay of £34,963, the think tank said. This represents a 9.5% increase on median CEO pay levels as of March 2023, while the median worker’s pay has increased by 6%.

“Lobbyists for big business and the financial services industry spent much of 2023 arguing that top earners in Britain aren’t paid enough and that we are too concerned with gaps between the super-rich and everybody else,” said High Pay Centre Director Luke Hildyard.

“They think that economic success is created by a tiny number of people at the top and that everybody else has very little to contribute. When politicians listen to these misguided views, it’s unsurprising that we end up with massive inequality, and stagnating living standards for the majority of the population.”

Leading business and finance figures in the U.K. in 2023 called for an increase in remuneration for British CEOs. The High Pay Centre highlighted that in December, Legal and General Investment Management adjusted its executive pay guidelines to permit companies it invests in to offer more generous incentive payments.

In May, London Stock Exchange CEO Julia Hoggett argued that pay levels for top executives were too low, and pose a risk to the U.K.’s ability to attract and retain elite domestic and international talent, in turn jeopardizing the economy.

“And yet, very often, this talent objective is hampered by the advice and analysis of the proxy agencies and some asset managers voting against executive pay policies even when those pay levels are significantly below global benchmarks,” she said in a post on the exchange’s website.

“Often the same proxy agencies and asset managers that oppose compensation levels in the UK support much higher compensation packages in different jurisdictions, notably in the U.S.”

S&P 500 CEOs stateside earned an average of $16.7 million in 2022 compared to an average full-time worker’s annual salary of $61,900, according to the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

Hoggett said a “constructive discussion with all stakeholders about a topic that tends to generate emotion and strong views” was essential if the U.K. is to be placed on a competitive footing internationally.

‘Obscene levels of pay inequality’

The Trades Union Congress, which represents 48 member unions across the U.K., said Thursday’s figures showed Britain’s ruling Conservative government was presiding over “obscene levels of pay inequality.”

“While working people have been forced to suffer the longest wage squeeze in modern history, City bosses have been allowed to pocket bumper rises and bankers have been given unlimited bonuses,” TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the U.K. Treasury was not immediately available to comment when contacted by CNBC.

U.K. workers and households have endured a historic cost of living crisis over the last two years, while the tax burden continues to grow and is expected to hit a post-war high of 37.7% of gross domestic product in 2028/29, according to the independent Office for Budget Responsibility. This is despite recently announced cuts to National Insurance tax on workers.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, one of the U.K.’s largest unions with over 1.2 million members, said the union would “not tolerate employers who want one rule for the bosses and another for the workers.”

“These CEOs need to get their snouts out of the trough and give their employees a proper piece of the pie. Unite is on a mission to make work pay in this country and where employers have ability to pay, we will continue to demand and win proper pay rises for our members,” she added.

LONDON — European stocks started the final session of 2023 higher, marking a positive end to a solid year.

The regional Stoxx 600 index was up 0.26% in mid-morning trade, with all sectors in the green. Thin trade is expected, while London markets close early.

Spanish pharmaceutical group Grifols was the biggest stock mover, climbing 8.9% after announcing it will sell a 20% stake in Shanghai RAAS, a blood products firm, to China’s Haier for approximately $1.8 billion.

The blue-chip benchmark Stoxx is set to have gained more than 12% in 2023, according to LSEG data, just about reversing its 2022 loss.

Germany’s DAX has risen nearly 20% despite the country’s gloomy economic picture, while France’s CAC 40 and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 have gained 16.3% and 3.64%, respectively.

In the U.S., the S&P 500 index is chasing a new record high to cap off the rally of the last two months.

Latest data releases, including Thursday’s on jobless claims, continue to suggest U.S. economic growth is slowing without grinding to a halt. Market bets currently place a 72.8% probability on the Federal Reserve beginning rate cuts as soon as March 2024, CME’s FedWatch shows.

In the final readings of the year, U.S. annual headline inflation had slowed to 3.1% in November from 6.4% in January.

That compared with a drop to 2.4% from 8.5% in the euro zone, and to 3.9% from 10.1% in the U.K. — both of which have also fueled expectations of rate cuts next year amid sharp economic slowdowns in both economies.

“The apparent loss of U.S. economic momentum in late 2023 suits the view that the full impact of aggressive US Federal Reserve rate hikes may still be in the pipeline,” economists at Berenberg said in a note Friday.

“Nevertheless, the Fed remains on track to pull off the usually elusive feat of a soft landing in 2024. The easing of underlying inflation has encouraged bond and equity markets to play the Fed pivot theme,” they added, though they do not expect the first cut until May 2024.

Data on Spanish inflation will be released on Friday.

U.K. house prices recorded a 1.8% fall in the year to December, according to lender Nationwide, a bigger drop than recent polls suggested but significantly lower than calls made for a fall of up to 10% earlier in 2023.

Subscribe to CNBC PRO for exclusive insights and analysis, and live business day programming from around the world.

LONDON — U.K. inflation fell by more than expected in to hit 3.9% in November, in the lowest annual reading since September 2021.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected a modest decline in the headline consumer price index to 4.4%, after the 4.6% annual reading of October surprised to the downside by dropping to a two-year low.

Month-on-month, headline CPI fell by 0.2%, compared to a consensus forecast of a 0.1% increase.

Core CPI — which excludes volatile food, energy, alcohol and tobacco prices — came in at an annual 5.1%, well below a 5.6% forecast.

The surprisingly large falls prompted a spike in bets that the Bank of England will cut interest rates in 2024, which manifested in a sharp fall in British bond yields.

The U.K. 10-year gilt yield sunk to an eight-month low, dropping 11 basis points to around 3.54%. Yields move inversely to prices. Meanwhile, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 was the only major European stock index in positive territory on Wednesday, climbing 0.8% by mid-morning trade.

The Office for National Statistics said the largest downward contributions came from transport, recreation and culture, and food and non-alcoholic beverages.

The Bank of England last week maintained a hawkish tone as it kept its main interest rate unchanged at 5.25%. The Monetary Policy Committee reiterated that policy is “likely to need to be restrictive for an extended period of time.”

The central bank ended a run of 14 straight interest rate hikes in September, as policymakers looked to wrestle inflation back down towards the Bank’s 2% target from a 41-year high of 11.1% in October 2022.

U.K. Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt cheered the Wednesday figures and said the country was “starting to remove inflationary pressures from the economy.”

“Alongside the business tax cuts announced in the Autumn Statement this means we are back on the path to healthy, sustainable growth,” he said in a statement.

“But many families are still struggling with high prices so we will continue to prioritise measures that help with cost of living pressures.”

Significant fall ‘undermines’ Bank of England caution

The Bank of England has repeatedly pushed back against market expectations for significant cuts to interest rates in 2024, noting last week that “key indicators of U.K. inflation persistence remain elevated.”

Suren Thiru, economics director at ICAEW, said the “startling” fall in inflation recorded on Wesdnesday will reassure households that there is a “light at the end of the tunnel,” with easing core CPI figures showing that underlying price pressures are relenting.

“The likely squeeze on wages from rising unemployment and a stagnating economy should help to continue to keep them on a downward trajectory,” he said by email.

“These inflation numbers suggest that the Bank of England is too pessimistic in its rhetoric over when interest rates could start falling. A deteriorating economy could push the Bank to start loosening policy by the Autumn, particularly if inflationary pressures continuing easing.”

A ‘glimmer of relief’

Richard Carter, head of fixed interest research at Quilter Cheviot, said the latest inflation print adds to a sense of “cautious optimism” in the U.K. relative to the cost of living crisis and bond market chaos of last year.

Despite the drop in CPI, he noted that the broader economic picture remains “complex, marred by stagnation and subdued growth prospects.”

The U.K. economy contracted by 0.3% month-on-month in October, after flatlining in the third quarter.

“This stagnation, leaving the output no higher than it was in January, paints a picture of an economy struggling to rebound from a series of unprecedented challenges,” Carter said over email, while acknowledging that the pace at which inflation is slowing offers a “glimmer of relief” for households.

“The pressures are manifold – from the cost of living crisis, volatile energy markets, Brexit aftershocks, to enduring productivity issues. These factors have collectively dampened economic prospects and consumer confidence.”