Average wage rises in December, half of Hungarians still earn less than EUR 1300/month

The gross average wage in Hungary amounted to 655,600 forints (EUR 1,694) in December, increasing by an annual 16.4 percent, while net pay including supplementary payments came to 451,300 forints (EUR 1,165), the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Thursday.

Net wages were up 16.3 percent year on year, while real wages rose by an annual 10.3 percent, the KSH reported.

In the full year 2023, the gross average wage amounted to 571,200 forints (EUR 1,475), while net pay came to 393,700 forints (EUR 1,016). Gross and net wages both rose by 14.2 percent, while real wages fell by 2.9 percent from a year earlier.

Sándor Czomba, the state secretary for employment policy, said real wages grew by more than 10 percent in December thanks to the government’s successful measures which pushed down inflation to 5.5 percent by the end of last year.

The rise in the purchasing power of salaries has also been helped by the increase in the basic minimum wage by 15 percent and the one for skilled employees by 10 percent from December, he added.

The dynamic growth in real wages will contribute to restoring consumption and economic growth, the state secretary said.

Read also:

• Record number of Hungarians in Austria: exploring the causes
• Hungary inflation falls below psychological barrier