Japan's real wages rose 1.5% YoY in August, marking an eighth consecutive
monthly increase, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said, supporting
the Bank of Japan's case for further rate hikes after last month's policy-rate
increase. The August real-wage gain was below July's revised 2.0% increase.
Average nominal wages rose 3.8% YoY in August (July revised 4.3%); base pay
+3.8% YoY (unchanged from revised July); overtime pay +5.2% (July revised 4.5%).
The MHLW used a 2.2% inflation rate to calculate real wages, unchanged from July
and below last year's 3.1%. Tokyo's September core CPI rose to a 10-month high
last week, reinforcing upward price pressure and the case for additional BOJ
tightening.
