Australia Q2 wages rise at slowest pace in a year

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian wages rose at their slowest pace in a year in the June quarter, confirming the peak for this cycle had passed and wages alone would not be a bar to cut interest rates.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Pedestrians walk across a main road in a retail shopping area in central Sydney, Australia, November 15, 2017. REUTERS/Steven Saphore/File Photo

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday showed its wage price index rose 0.8% in the June quarter, under market forecasts for a 0.9% rise.

Annual pay growth held at 4.1%, as past growth was revised up slightly. Growth in the private sector rose 0.7% in the quarter.