UK's Topps Tiles sees $5.2 million annual cost hike from new wage expenses

(Reuters) - British tile retailer Topps Tiles TPT.L said on Wednesday it expects a rise in its annual cost base by about 4 million pounds ($5.2 million) from this month due to national living wage and insurance expenses, and reported strong sales growth in March.

British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves in her first budget last year had raised employers' social security contributions by 1.2 percentage points to 15% from April 2025 to raise revenue, with some companies pointing that it could hinder economic growth due to elevated payroll costs.

Topps Tiles said group sales, excluding that of CTD Tiles which it acquired last year, rose 4% in the 26 weeks ended March 29, helped by solid performance in its online trading.

($1 = 0.7745 pounds)

(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)