The wage index or the amount of wages is a relative percentage indicator of the amount of earnings for comparing the dynamics of inflation and the income of the working population. It is defined as the total value of salaries, additional payments and accrued monetary benefits for a calendar month, quarter and year.

Wage indices in developed countries

The amount of payments in the United States is collected and calculated by the Bureau of Labor Department Statistics, indicators include:

bid The US Federal Reserve, but its statistics are not published in economic calendar.

The average hourly salary is a monthly percentage indicator of the change in the level of wages to the previous, base period. The salary takes into account only employees of the main industrial sectors, excluding farmers.

Before the data is published, the economic calendar contains analysts ' forecasts, along with the previous values. Traders in the foreign exchange market react:

  • On the positive discrepancies of real indicators over the forecast ones – the growth of the exchange rate US Dollar
  • On negative discrepancies – the weakening of the dollar index against a basket of major currencies

Statistics are published on Tuesdays, at the beginning of the month, and contain preliminary and updated parameters.

Unit Wage Costs – the cost of labor in the UK, an index reflecting the cost of producing one unit of production. Thanks to this indicator, calculated by the Office for National Statistics, inflationary pressure is defined as the excess of the cost of an hour of labor over productivity.

The indicator is published monthly, as a percentage of the previous period.

  • Salary level in The euro area is a quarterly indicator of the income of the average European family before taxes and fees, including financial support from the state. The indicator has little effect on the market, due to relativity and a rare publication in the middle of the last month of the quarter.