TOKYO -- Meager growth in pay for Japan's workers sank a crucial yardstick for the fight against deflation into negative territory during the October-December period, dampening some long-awaited optimism achieved in the previous three months.
In the last three months of 2017, the nation's unit labor costs -- nominal wages divided by gross domestic product -- shrank year over year for the first time in nine quarters as a result of sluggish growth in pay compared to GDP.
