Real wages increase 17% yoy in May

Real wages in
Ukraine rose 16.8% yoy in May, slowing from 19.7% yoy growth in April, the
State Statistics Service reported on June 29. The average monthly nominal wage
amounted to UAH 13,499 (USD 489), declining from UAH 13,543 in March, or 1.6%
m/m in real terms.

The leaders for
average monthly wages were the City of Kyiv (UAH 19,287), Ukrainian-controlled
Donetsk (UAH 14,457) and Kyiv (UAH 13,850) regions. The largest average nominal
wage increase was in hospitality and catering services (130.5% yoy), healthcare
and social services (50.8% yoy) as well as arts, sports and recreation (47.5%
yoy).

Within the
industrial sector, the highest growth of nominal wages was in the textile
industry (47.5% yoy), machinery (32.6% yoy) as well as wood processing and
printing (30.1% yoy).

Evgeniya Akhtyrko: The outstanding growth of real
wages in May was partially due to the low comparative base of May 2020 (up
1.4% yoy). The growth
rate of wages will slow down in upcoming months as the low base effect will be
wearing off.

We expect real wages
will rise 8-9% yoy in 2021. The growth of wages will be boosted by economic
revival and rising demandfor labor.