Euro-zone and EU15 labour costs up by 3.7%

Total hourly labour costs in the whole economy of the euro-zone grew by 3.7% in nominal terms in the second quarter of 2002 compared to the second quarter of 2001, Eurostat - Statistical Office of the European Communities in Luxembourg - reported yesterday. In the first quarter of 2002 the increase was a revised 4.0%. For the EU15 the rise was 3.7% in the second quarter of 2002, the same as in the previous quarter.

Among Member States for which data are available, the smallest annual rises were in Germany and Spain (2.4% each) and Portugal (2.5%) and the biggest in Italy (4.4%).

In industry, hourly labour costs rose by 3.1% in the euro-zone and by 3.2% in the EU15. Among Member States for which data are available, the smallest annual increases in costs were in Germany (2.0%) and Spain (2.6%), while the biggest increase was registered in Denmark (4.0%).

For the second quarter 2002, among Member States for which data are available, the biggest increase in wages, which cover most of the total labour costs, was in France (4.7%) and the smallest in Spain (1.8%).

(source: Eurostat)

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