Benchmark
This New Indicator Shows the U.S. Job Market Finally Heating Up
Wage growth has substantially accelerated, Atlanta Fed data show
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.
Photographer: Andrew HarrerThis article is for subscribers only.
Just how quickly is everyone's paycheck growing? It's one of the most important questions in the American job market right now, with only inconclusive answers derived from conflicting data so far. This week, a regional Federal Reserve bank added a new indicator to the mix in hopes of offering policy makers a closer look at what's really happening in the U.S. job market.
The new index—which shows a median wage increase of 3.3 percent in the 12 months through May, a substantially faster pace than even just a year ago—gives ammunition to central bank hawks who would like to raise interest rates in September.