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MNI BRIEF: US Labor Costs Increase 0.9%, Below Expectations

The Employment Cost Index, the broadest measure of U.S. labor costs, rose 0.9% last quarter, a tenth below expectations and down from 1.2% in the January-March period, the Labor Department said on Wednesday. The year-on-year rate fell to 4.1% from 4.2% in the previous quarter and 4.5% a year ago.

The ECI is widely viewed by policymakers and economists as one of the better measures of labor market slack and a predictor of core inflation. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues were looking for a deceleration in the employment cost index and are looking for nominal wages to cool to around 3.5%. The latest figures provide some relief that things are moving in the right direction. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Worries Over US Jobs Weakness Overdone- Bullard)

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The Employment Cost Index, the broadest measure of U.S. labor costs, rose 0.9% last quarter, a tenth below expectations and down from 1.2% in the January-March period, the Labor Department said on Wednesday. The year-on-year rate fell to 4.1% from 4.2% in the previous quarter and 4.5% a year ago.

The ECI is widely viewed by policymakers and economists as one of the better measures of labor market slack and a predictor of core inflation. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues were looking for a deceleration in the employment cost index and are looking for nominal wages to cool to around 3.5%. The latest figures provide some relief that things are moving in the right direction. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Worries Over US Jobs Weakness Overdone- Bullard)

Keep reading...Show less