Cyprus hourly labour costs rise 3.8% in second quarter of 2026
Cyprus hourly labour costs increased by 3.8 per cent year on year in the second quarter of 2026, according to provisional Cystat data.
Nicosia, Cyprus. Hourly labour costs in Cyprus rose by 3.8 per cent year on year in the second quarter of 2026, according to provisional data released by the Statistical Service (Cystat) on Tuesday.
The increase followed a 3.4 per cent annual rise in the first quarter and was marginally above the 3.7 per cent growth recorded in the second quarter of 2025.
Wages and non-wage costs
Wages and salaries per hour worked increased by 3.9 per cent compared with the second quarter of 2025, while non-wage costs rose by 3.6 per cent.
Wage growth accelerated from an annual increase of 3.4 per cent in the first quarter. Non-wage costs rose from 3 per cent in the first three months of the year.
Labour cost index
The unadjusted total labour cost index reached 121.87 in the second quarter, compared with 119.43 in the previous quarter and 117.38 a year earlier.
The wages and salaries index rose to 122.20 from 119.79 in the first quarter and 117.64 in the second quarter of 2025. The non-wage cost index stood at 120.48, up from 117.92 in the previous quarter and 116.33 a year earlier.
The indices use 2020 as the reference year, set at 100.
Quarterly changes
After seasonal adjustment, total hourly labour costs increased by 1 per cent compared with the previous quarter. Wages and salaries also rose by 1 per cent, while non-wage costs increased by 0.9 per cent.
The quarterly increase was stronger than in the second quarter of 2025, when seasonally adjusted total labour costs and wages and salaries each rose by 0.6 per cent from the previous quarter, while non-wage costs increased by 0.5 per cent.
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