XN000022-1996-07-17 — Page 14

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The overall wage index covering selected major sectors however showed a less rapid increase than average labour earnings. This index rose by 6.1% in nominal terms in March 1996 over a year earlier. After discounting changes in consumer prices, the index showed only a marginal decrease of 0.6% in real terms.

The relatively faster increase in earnings as compared to wages was due to more overtime pay and the issue of irregular payments in some sectors, which were covered in earnings but not in wages.

This probably signified a higher intensity of manpower utilisation for those in employment. Also, the more moderate wage increase reflected the adjustments to the easing in labour market conditions during the course of last year.

The wage indices for financing, insurance, real estate and business services and personal services showed increases in real terms between March 1995 and March 1996.

On the other hand, the wage indices for the manufacturing sector, wholesale, retail and import/export trades, restaurants and hotels and transport services recorded decreases of different magnitudes in real terms.

Year-on-year changes in the indices of payroll per person engaged and wage indices for selected major sectors, in both nominal and real terms, are shown in Table 1 and Table 2 respectively.

Statistics on average payroll per person engaged are compiled at quarterly intervals based on the results of the Labour Earnings Survey conducted by the Census and Statistics Department.

The wage indices are compiled from the same survey at half-yearly intervals for March and September of the year. The wage indices cover both manual and non- manual workers up to the supervisory level.

Average payroll includes wages as well as all other irregular receipts such as bonuses and overtime payments. Statistics on average payroll tend to show larger quarter-to-quarter changes, affected by the number of hours actually worked and the timing of payment of bonuses and back-pay.

Information on employees' entitlement to various types of fringe benefits other than basic wages was also collected in this round of the survey.