Euro area labour costs rose by 2.7%

Total hourly labour costs in the euro area1 (EA13) rose by 2,7% in nominal terms in the year up to the fourth quarter of 2007, compared with 2,5% for the previous quarter, in the EU27, the
annual rise was 3,5% up to the fourth quarter of 2007, compared with 3,7% for the previous quarter.

The two main components of labour costs are wages & salaries and non-wage costs. In the euro area, wages & salaries grew by 2.9% in the year up to the fourth quarter of 2007, and
non-wage costs by 2.2%, compared with 2.6% and 2.3% respectively for the third quarter of 2007. In the EU27, wages & salaries rose by 3.7% and the non-wage component by 2.9%. For the
previous quarter the corresponding rates were 3.9% and 3.2%.

A breakdown by economic activity shows that in the euro area hourly labour costs rose at an annual rate of 2.8% in industry, 3.7% in construction and 2.5% in services up to the fourth quarter
of 2007. In the EU27, labour costs grew by 3.7% in industry, 5.3% in construction and 3.2% in services.