Real monthly regular wage hike hits 5-year high in Taiwan as inflation moderates

Taipei, July 11 (CNA) In the first five months of 2025, the average monthly regular wage increase in Taiwan, after inflationary adjustments, reached a five-year high, as growth of the consumer price index (CPI) showed signs of moderating, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

In the industrial and service sectors, the average real monthly regular wage rose 0.96 percent during the five-month period, the biggest increase in five years, to reach NT$43,572 (US$1,489), DGBAS data showed Thursday.

The average nominal monthly regular wage, before inflationary adjustments, increased 3.02 percent to NT$47,568 from January to May, marking the highest growth in 25 years, according to the data.

The average monthly wage increase came amid signs of CPI moderation in the first five months of 2025, the DGBAS said. The CPI growth was 2.04 percent in the five-month period, compared with 2.15 percent in the period January to April, although it remained above the 2 percent alert issued by the central bank.

Tan Wen-ling (譚文玲), deputy director of the DGBAS' Census Department, told reporters Thursday that the latest data showed a stable increase in wages in Taiwan and also indicated that the job market had moved away from inflationary interruptions.

Average nominal monthly earnings, which comprise regular and non-regular wages such as overtime pay and bonuses, rose 7.20 percent year-on-year in the January to May period to reach NT$61,902, the data showed.

The significant increase came amid generous bonuses for the Dragon Boat Festival, which fell on May 31 this year, the DGBAS said. As a result, average nominal monthly non-regular earnings were NT$14,106 during the five month period, it said.

After inflationary adjustments, average real monthly earnings rose 1.65 percent during the five-month period from a year earlier, according to the DGBAS.

In May alone, the average nominal wage rose 2.88 percent from a year earlier to NT$47,796, the DGBAS data showed.

To prevent distortion of the wage increase by top earners in the average data, the DGBAS also released the average median regular wage data for May, which was NT$38,224, up 2.59 percent from a year earlier.

Meanwhile, the DGBAS said overtime working hours in the industrial and service sectors averaged 9.1 hours in May, up 0.5 hours from a year earlier. In the export-oriented manufacturing sector, the figure was 17.9 hours, the highest in eight years and seven months, it said.

Overtime working hours averaged 27.8 in the electronics component industry in May, the second highest number in 45 years, after the 28 hours recorded in April, the DGBAS said.

According to Tan, the increase reflected a booming era of artificial intelligence development, as well as rush orders from foreign buyers amid a 90-day pause on the "reciprocal tariffs" announced by the United States on April 9.

In May, the number of employees in the local electronics component industry increased by 11,000 from a year earlier, which was also an indicator of strong global demand, she said, adding that steady employment growth in the manufacturing sector might continue in June.