South Korea's Real Wages Drop, Ending Five-Month Surge

2025-04-29 07:43:10

(MENAFN) South Korea's real wages, after adjusting for inflation, dropped in February for the first time in five months, according to labor ministry data released on Tuesday.

The average nominal monthly wage in companies with at least one regular employee dropped by 5.4% year-on-year to 4,117,000 won (around 2,870 U.S. dollars) in February, as reported by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

Real wages, after factoring in inflation, fell by 7.3% in February compared to the same month last year, marking a significant downturn.

Consumer price inflation increased from 1.3% in October of the previous year to 2.2% in January 2025, before slightly slowing to 2.0% in February.

Meanwhile, the average number of hours worked per employee per month rose by 4.4% to 152.0 hours in February compared to the same time in 2024.

The manufacturing sector had the highest working hours, with an average of 166.1 hours per month, closely followed by the water, sewage, and waste disposal industry at 164.0 hours. In contrast, the education services sector recorded the fewest working hours, averaging 128.7 hours in February.

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