Business Leaders Survey: Wages: Current (increase vs decrease; diffusion index; percentage points; seasonally adjusted) - United States - NY FED - Monthly
This series is part of the dataset: Business Leaders Survey (NY FED)
Download Full Dataset (.xlsx)Latest updates. Based on a sample of service firms surveyd by the FED, the seasonally adjusted diffusion index for wages (share of CEOs seeing a recent increase minus share reporting a decrease) was 28.2 in October 2026, versus 30.3 in September.
Sample. There are 266 observations in the monthly series displayed in the plot above. The time period covered by the series extends from September 2004 to October 2026.
History. Here are some summary statistics calculated on the entire sample: the diffusion index reached its maximum of 61.4 in November 2021; it recorded a minimum of -19.3 in May 2020; it averaged 35.8.
Latest values
| Date | Value - Percentage points |
|---|---|
| 2026-08-31 | 30.7000 |
| 2026-09-30 | 30.3000 |
| 2026-10-31 | 28.2000 |
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Series Metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Description | Diffusion index for the question: Over the past three months did wages paid increase or decrease? |
| Country | United States |
| Economic concept | Business survey response |
| Data type | Coincident indicator of the business cycle |
| Deflation method | Not applicable |
| Seasonally adjusted | Yes |
| Rescaling | None |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Unit | Percentage points |
| Source | Federal Reserve Bank of New York |
| Source type | Central bank |
| Data licence | Free use subject to conditions |
| Measure type | Diffusion index (share of respondents reporting an increase minus share reporting a decrease) |
Series in the same data set
Discover the other time series included in this data set.
Current conditions SA
| Series Name | Observations | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Leaders Survey: Wages: Current (increase vs decrease; diffusion index; percentage points; seasonally adjusted) - United States - NY FED - Monthly | 266 | 2004-09-30 | 2026-10-31 |
Future conditions SA
| Series Name | Observations | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Leaders Survey: Wages: Future (increase vs decrease; diffusion index; percentage points; seasonally adjusted) - United States - NY FED - Monthly | 266 | 2004-09-30 | 2026-10-31 |