Stats: Real Wages Rise in All Sectors in May

Bratislava, 14 July (TASR) - Average nominal monthly wages in May 2026 increased year-on-year across all 10 sectors monitored on a monthly basis, with the growth ranging from 1.3 percent in information and communication to 7.3 percent in retail trade, the Statistics Office reported on Tuesday. Real wages, adjusted for inflation, rose y-o-y in six of the 10 monitored segments. Growth ranged from 1.1 percent in wholesale trade to 3.4 percent in retail trade. Real wages also recorded stronger growth in industry, a key sector of the Slovak economy, where they increased by 3 percent. By contrast, four sectors posted y-o-y declines in real wages. The sharpest fall was in information and communication (-2.4 percent), followed by construction (-1.4 percent), selected market services (-0.4 percent), and the sale and repair of motor vehicles (-0.1 percent). From January to the end of May 2026, both nominal and real wages increased y-o-y in nine of the 10 sectors monitored monthly. Real wage growth over the period ranged from a 4.2 percent decline in information and communication to a 2.1 percent increase in transport and storage. mf