Firms in Suffolk are already counting the cost of the Budget after an early announcement that the minimum and living wage will be going up next year.
At 4.1%, the main Living Wage rise is roughly in line with inflation - with the Consumer Prices Index including housing (CPIH) at 3.8% and Retail Prices Index (RPI) at 4.3%.
From April 2026, the National Living Wage rate - for workers aged 21 and above - will see their wages go up by 4.1% from £12.21 to £12.71 an hour - a £900 annual increase.
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That means a full-time worker doing a standard 37.5 hour week will see their pay packet rise to £24,785 a year.
For younger workers, the National Minimum Wage is set to rise 8.5% from £10 to £10.85 an hour - or by £1,500 a year.
The minimum wage for 16-17-year-olds and those on apprenticeships will increase by 6% from £7.55 to £8 an hour.
Henry Chevallier Guild - who runs the Chevallier Brewing Company at Eye with brother Henry - warned this would put added pressure on the hospitality industry which is already struggling.
Many staff in the hospitality industry are paid the minimum amount, he said.
"While neither the national living wage nor the minimum wage affect us directly as an employer, it will affect us indirectly if it causes further financial pain on our customer base," he said.
With the UK's jobless numbers rising to the highest levels in recent times, it could add to the pressure, he suggested.
"This isn't going to help on any level."
Chancellor Rachel Reeves - speaking at Primark ahead of her Budget speech today at 12.30pm - said the cost of living was still the number one issue for working people.
The move would boost the pay packets of around 2.7 million workers, she said.
"The economy isn't working well enough for those on the lowest incomes. Too many people are still struggling to make ends meet and that has to change," she said.
"These changes are going to benefit many young people across our country, getting their first job."
The government has secured trade deals with the US, with the EU, and with India and has capped corporation tax. It is reforming business rates in order to help the high street, she added.