Wage Index
The Wage Index measures average worker compensation and serves as an official proxy for labor income, reflecting labor-market conditions and purchasing power. Its construction differs across countries depending on data sources and coverage — for example private sector, public sector, formal or informal employment — so users should review country-specific notes for precise definitions. Part of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Latin Macro Watch, this indicator helps researchers, policymakers and journalists track wage dynamics across Latin America and the Caribbean.
Coverage
The series covers 18 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean at annual, monthly and quarterly frequency over the period 1990–2026. Values are available as an index (including a 2023 = 100 base, average-of-period, end-of-period and seasonally adjusted variants) and in constant prices (CPI-deflated), with moving-average smoothing (MA3, MA6, MA12) and month-on-month (MoM %), quarter-on-quarter (QoQ %) and year-on-year (YoY %) transformations.
Sources
Data are compiled by the IDB from central banks and national statistical agencies, including the Banco Central do Brasil, the Banco de Mexico (Banxico), the Banco de la República de Colombia, INDEC - Argentina and the Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (INE) de Chile. See the resource notes for the full source list and country-specific methodology.
Metadata & use
| Format | CSV |
|---|---|
| Language | en |
| Country |
Argentina
Bahamas
Trinidad & Tobago
Belize
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
El Salvador
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Panama
Uruguay
Venezuela
Barbados
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
|
| Data notes |
What does the Wage Index measure?It measures average worker compensation and serves as an official proxy for labor income, reflecting labor-market conditions and purchasing power. Why does its construction vary across countries?Construction depends on each country's data sources and coverage, such as private sector, public sector, formal or informal employment, so you should review the country-specific notes for precise definitions. How many countries and what period does it cover?It covers 18 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean at annual, monthly and quarterly frequency over 1990–2026. What units and transformations are available?Values are available as an index (including a 2023 = 100 base and seasonally adjusted variants) and in constant prices (CPI-deflated), with moving averages (MA3, MA6, MA12) and MoM %, QoQ % and YoY % changes. Where does the data come from?The IDB compiles the series from central banks and national statistical agencies, including the Banco Central do Brasil, the Banco de Mexico (Banxico), the Banco de la República de Colombia, INDEC - Argentina and the Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (INE) de Chile. What is the Wage Index used for?It is used to track wage and labor-income dynamics, gauge real purchasing power and inform analysis of inflation, competitiveness and household welfare. How do I cite this indicator?Cite as: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Latin Macro Watch — "Wage Index." data.iadb.org/dataset/latin-macro-watch-dataset. |