Euro zone labour costs jump 5.7% y/y in Q4

Kitco Media
By Reuters
Published:
Updated:
Reuters
BRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) - Euro zone labour costs jumped in the last three months of 2022, and third quarter data was revised up as well, but the rise of the wage component was still roughly half of the increase in consumer inflation, data showed on Friday. The European Union's statistics office Eurostat said labour costs in the 19 countries that shared the euro in the last quarter of 2022 rose 5.7% year-on-year, with wages up 5.1% and non-wage labour costs up 7.7%. Labour costs of the third quarter of 2022 were revised upwards to 3.7% year-on-year from 2.9% reported earlier and wage growth to 3.0% from 2.1% Consumer inflation was 9.2% year-on-year in December, down from 10.1% in November and 10.6% in October, giving an average of 10% for the quarter. The ECB watches labour costs to determine how much of the energy price shock caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine filtered through to other areas of the economy and whether rampant inflation becomes entrenched.


Euro zone wages grew fastest in construction, up 6.5% in the fourth quarter against the same period of 2021, followed by services, where pay rose 5.7% with industry up only 4.4%.
(Reporting by Jan Strupczewski)

Messaging: jan.strupczewski.reuters.com@reuters.net))
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.