S. Korea's real wage falls in January-October

SEOUL, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's real wage, adjusted for inflation, fell for the first 10 months of this year due to the still high inflation, labor ministry data showed Thursday.

The per-capita nominal monthly average wage in businesses with one or more regular employees grew 2.7 percent over the year to 3,944,000 won (3,060 U.S. dollars) during the January-October period, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

The real monthly wage shrank 1.0 percent to 3,542,000 won (2,740 dollars) in the 10-month period.

For the first 10 months of this year, the consumer price index (CPI) gained 3.7 percent compared to the same period of last year.

In October alone, the real wage grew 0.6 percent on a yearly basis, keeping an upward trend for the second straight month.

The monthly average working hours per worker in the businesses retreated 2.7 percent over the year to 146.9 hours in October.

The water, sewage and waste disposal sector recorded the longest monthly working hours at 163.0, followed by the manufacturing industry with 160.9 hours.

The construction industry logged the shortest working hours of 121.7 in the cited month.