Salaries in the service sector "jump" in the second quarter, travel agencies and transport with the highest growth

According to the data from the "Statistics Institute", in the publication on short-term statistics, services during the second quarter of this year show an increase in almost all indices, but the biggest increase is observed especially in salaries. According to the figures, travel and information and communication agencies recorded the greatest growth, both in sales and in the number of employees and salaries. This increase in this sector is mainly the result of the good performance of the tourist season, which has been confirmed by many other indicators, the most recent of which are those of accommodation structures or the entry of foreign citizens into our country. Thus, travel agencies present an increase in net sales by 33.7%, compared to a year ago. The index of the number of employees by 16% and the wage fund by 39.9% also show an increase. compared to the second quarter of last year. Information and Communication also recorded growth during the first quarter of this year. The volume sales index for the "Information and Communication" activity has increased by 24.4%, while on the other hand, the index of the number of employees has increased by 10.7%. The wage bill has increased by 43.3% and this is the highest wage increase of all service sectors. From the data, it is noted that the index of the wage fund and that of the number of employees during the second quarter of 2023 has increased for all activities, compared to the same period of the previous year. "Bar-Restaurants" and "Hotels" are also presented with growth in all indices, where the highest growth has occurred in the salary index with 24.5% and 25.1%. The trade sector also shows an increase, where the highest increase is recorded in the salary fund with 27.3%. The only indicators with a decrease, according to INSTAT figures, are the index of net sales in volume for architectural and engineering activities with 1.3% and transport and storage with -0.6%.