SYDNEY, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Australia wage price index data for the fourth

quarter, issued on Wednesday.

Hourly rates of pay excluding bonuses (% change)

Seasonally adjusted Q4 Q3 yr/yr

Total hourly +0.8 +0.7 +3.4

Private +0.8 +0.8 +3.4

Public +0.8 +0.7 +3.2

Forecasts centred on a rise of 0.8 percent in the quarter and an increase of

3.5 percent on a year earlier.

For details, see the Australian Bureau of Statistics Web site at

www.abs.gov.au.

(Reporting by Ian Chua; Editing by John Mair)

Keywords: ECONOMY AUSTRALIA/WAGE

(ian.chua@thomsonreuters.com)(+61 2 9373 1871)(RM: ian.chua.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)

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