Salaries across the world are expected to rise above inflation, by 1.9 percentage points on average, according to a study by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.

It found that average pay in two-thirds of the countries surveyed, including the UK and America, is forecast to rise by between 1 and 3.5 percentage points. The highest salary rises are expected in Venezuela and the lowest are forecast in Germany.

“Pay increases tend to vary significantly around the world, depending on country-specific factors such as inflation, economic growth and unemployment,” says Mercer partner Steve Gross.

“Global companies need to be especially aware of these key economic and labour market differences when setting compensation budgets and deciding how to allocate resources to generate the greatest return on their rewards investment.”