Hungary wages grow 8.9 pc

Wage growth in Hungary quickened to an annual 8.9 percent in August from 7.9 percent in the previous month, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Friday.

The average monthly wage before tax for fulltime employees was 426,500 (EUR 1,180) forints, while the average net wage was 283,600.

The gross median wage was 348,100 forints.

Calculating with annual inflation of 4.9 percent in August, real wages rose by 3.8 percent on average.

ING Bank chief analyst Péter Virovácz said the biggest boost to wages came from pre-scheduled wage increases in the public sector.

While in the business sector the pace of wage increases was more moderate, it was still higher than in the previous month, contributing to the overall pickup of wage growth in August.

Dániel Molnár, an analyst for economic researcher Századvég, said average wages were likely to rise by 8-9 percent by the end of the year.

Wage increases in 2022, he added, may top 10 percent based on the expected rise in the minimum wage both for unskilled and skilled workers as well as wage settlements in several segments of the public sector.