RIGA, March 2 (Reuters) - Average monthly gross wages were down 12.1 percent in fourth quarter of 2009 in Latvia compared with the same period of 2008, the statistics office said on Tuesday.
Latvia, which in late 2008 agreed a 7.5 billion euro ($10 billion) bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund and European Union, choose to keep its currency pegged to the euro and overcome economic problems via an internal devaluation of prices and wages.
'As a result of wage and salary optimisation and the abolition of bonuses and holiday allowances in state and local government institutions, monthly average gross wages and salaries during this period (fourth quarter 2009) in the public sector fell by 23.7 percent,' the statistics office said in a statement.
In the private sector, average wages in the last quarter of 2009 fell by 5 percent year-on-year.
The statistics office said average monthly wages were down by 3.5 percent compared to the third quarter of 2009.
The average monthly gross wage and salary in 2009 decreased to 461 lats ($879) from 479 lats in 2008.
The average for the fourth quarter was 440 lats, down from 456 lats in the previous three months.
(Reporting by Aija Braslina; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) ($1=.5243 Latvian Lat) ($1=.7395 Euro) Keywords: LATVIA ECONOMY/ (Riga newsroom, patrick.lannin@reuters.com, patrick.lannin.reuters.com@reuters.net, +371 29 269 191) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Latvia, which in late 2008 agreed a 7.5 billion euro ($10 billion) bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund and European Union, choose to keep its currency pegged to the euro and overcome economic problems via an internal devaluation of prices and wages.
'As a result of wage and salary optimisation and the abolition of bonuses and holiday allowances in state and local government institutions, monthly average gross wages and salaries during this period (fourth quarter 2009) in the public sector fell by 23.7 percent,' the statistics office said in a statement.
In the private sector, average wages in the last quarter of 2009 fell by 5 percent year-on-year.
The statistics office said average monthly wages were down by 3.5 percent compared to the third quarter of 2009.
The average monthly gross wage and salary in 2009 decreased to 461 lats ($879) from 479 lats in 2008.
The average for the fourth quarter was 440 lats, down from 456 lats in the previous three months.
(Reporting by Aija Braslina; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) ($1=.5243 Latvian Lat) ($1=.7395 Euro) Keywords: LATVIA ECONOMY/ (Riga newsroom, patrick.lannin@reuters.com, patrick.lannin.reuters.com@reuters.net, +371 29 269 191) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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