LONDON (Reuters) -British annual wage growth, excluding bonuses, slowed slightly to 4.6% in the three months to September compared with a year earlier, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday.

A Reuters poll of economists had mostly expected regular annual wage growth of 4.6% for the July-September period, slightly weaker than an increase of 4.7% in the three months to August.

The Bank of England is closely watching pay growth for signs of how persistent domestic inflation pressures are likely to prove. BoE officials held interest rates at 4% last week, and hinted that it could reduce borrowing costs in December.

(Reporting by Suban Abdulla; editing by Sarah Young)

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