PT Solid Gold Berjangka | Australia Wage Growth Quickens Past RBA Forecast Peak
Ekonomi Australia Upah Australia Wage Price Index PT SGB Solid Gold Berjangka Solid Group SG Berjangka
Solid Gold Berjangka | The Australian Wage Price Index (WPI) demonstrated further growth in the final quarter of 2023, surpassing the forecast peak by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). This suggests that policymakers will remain vigilant as they evaluate inflationary pressures within the economy.
According to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, the Wage Price Index rose by 4.2% in the fourth quarter compared to the same period the previous year, slightly exceeding economists’ expectations. This marks the highest annual growth recorded since the March quarter of 2009. On a quarterly basis, wages increased by 0.9%, aligning with analysts’ estimates.
The report is likely to reinforce expectations that the RBA will maintain its current borrowing costs unchanged at 4.35% during its upcoming meeting on March 18-19. The central bank’s board will closely monitor inflation and labor market conditions in its decision-making process.
RBA officials have previously indicated that wage growth of around 4% aligns with the central bank’s inflation target range of 2-3%, provided there is an improvement in the economy’s productivity. However, policymakers remain cautious as prolonged elevated inflation could lead to increased salary demands and subsequent price hikes by businesses, posing challenges to returning the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to its target range.
Michelle Marquardt, head of prices statistics at the ABS, attributed the growth in both public and private sector wages to annual organization-wide wage and salary reviews.
Following the release of the wages report, the Australian dollar experienced minimal change, maintaining a 0.1% increase at 65.54 US cents. Additionally, the three-year bond yield, which is sensitive to policy changes, remained two basis points lower on the day at 3.73%.
This wages report follows recent data indicating that unemployment in Australia rose to a two-year high of 4.1%, as job creation failed to keep pace with significant population growth.
Source: Bloomberg