Wages and Prices Are Up, but It Isn’t a Spiral—Yet

It’s no longer just prices. Now wages, too, are flashing inflation signals.

Wages in the third quarter were up 4.2% from a year earlier, the fastest increase since 1990 as labor shortages in a widening range of industries prompted employers to raise pay. Meanwhile, inflation has topped 5% for the past four months, the hottest in decades.