(LABOR) Higher Wage Growth Likely This Year, WTI Signals

Arlington, Va. (March 18, 2014) ­- Workers likely will see higher wage increases overall in private industry later this year, according to the revised first-quarter Wage Trend Indicator™ (WTI) released today by Bloomberg BNA, a leading publisher of specialized news and information.

The index rose for the second consecutive quarter to 98.92 (second quarter 1976 = 100) from 98.77 in the fourth quarter of 2013.

“All labor market indicators are giving green lights right now, although employment growth has been fairly weak,” economist Kathryn Kobe, a consultant who maintains and helped develop Bloomberg BNA’s WTI database, said. Kobe said she expects year-over-year wage growth in the private sector overall to rise slightly above 2.1 percent later this year. That was the gain reported for 2013 by the Labor Department in its employment cost index.

Reflecting recent economic conditions, five of the WTI’s seven components made positive contributions to the revised first-quarter reading, while one factor was negative and one was neutral.

Source: BNA.com