Hourly labour costs spike 6.1% in Cyprus

Hourly labour costs increase year-on-year in Cyprus (6.1%) in Q3 were nearly three times the eurozone average (2.6%) and double that of the EU28 (3.1%).

In the second quarter of 2019, hourly labour costs increased by 2.8% (euro area), 3.2% (EU28) and 6.1% (Cyprus), according to data published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

In Cyprus, the costs of hourly wages & salaries rose by 4.0% and the non-wage component rose by 16.7% in Q3 2019. In Q2 2019, annual changes were +4.1% and +17.1% respectively.

In Q3 2019, compared to last year, hourly labour costs in the euro area rose by 2.9% in industry, 2.3% in construction, 2.5% in services and 2.6% in the (mainly) non-business economy.

In the EU28, labour costs per hour grew by 3.3% in industry, 3.2% in construction, 3.1% in services and 2.9% in the (mainly) non-business economy.

In Cyprus, hourly labour costs rose by 5.3% in the business economy, 7.6% in the mainly non-business economy, 4.8% in the industry, 6.4% in construction and 5.2% in services.

In Q3 2019, the highest annual increases in hourly labour costs for the whole economy were registered in Romania (+13.2%) and Bulgaria (+10.0%) while the lowest increases were recorded in Luxembourg (0.3%) and Finland (0.4%). Cyprus recorded the EU’s ninth-highest hourly labour costs in Q3.

The two main components of labour costs are wages & salaries and non-wage costs.

In the euro area, the cost of both wages & salaries per hour worked and the non-wage component grew by 2.6% in Q3 compared with the same quarter of the previous year. In Q2 2019, the annual changes were +2.8% and +2.9% respectively.

In the EU28, the costs of hourly wages & salaries rose by 3.2% and the non-wage component increased 2.7% in Q3 2019. In Q2 2019, annual changes were +3.3% and +3.0% respectively.