In absolute terms, the average gross monthly wage for full-time employees stood at 391,600 forints (EUR 1,063). The average net wage was 260,400 forints. Calculating with twelve-month CPI of 3.9 in August, real wage growth stood at 5.0%.

Excluding the 90,400 Hungarians in fostered work programmes – who earned on average gross 81,700 forints in August – the average gross monthly wage in Hungary was 402,400 forints.

The average gross wage in the business sector, which includes state-owned companies, rose by 9.9% to 407,500 forints, excluding fostered workers.

The average gross wage in the public sector, excluding fostered workers, increased by 7.1% to 393,700 forints. For the period January-August, wage growth reached 9.9%.

People working in the ICT sector were the highest earners, getting a monthly gross 657,600 forints, while Hungarians in the commercial accommodations and catering sector had the lowest monthly pay of 251,700 forints.

KSH noted that men earned, on average, about 18.4% more than women in January-August.

Commenting on the data, state secretary for employment policy Sándor Bodó said the wage growth seen in the period January-August was as rapid as in previous periods.

However, inflation reached 3.5% over the past eight months, he told public news channel M1, adding that there were signs that wage growth would slow in the coming period.

Wages in Budapest remain significantly higher than in other parts of the country, with those employed in the capital making over 20% more than workers in Győr-Moson-Sopron County, Bodó said.