BEIRUT: Public sector salary expenditures increased to $2.4 billion up to October 2012, according to the Finance Ministry, $460 million more than the same period in 2011.

The spike in expenditures originated from the 2012 cost of living increase and retroactive payments that include the monthly increment for September and October 2012 and part of the retroactive payment for the period Feb.-Aug. 2012.

Salary expenditures were mainly composed of basic salaries at 74 percent, followed by allowances at 14 percent, other at 6 percent and indemnities at 5 percent.

Basic salaries for the first 10 months of 2012 reached $1.77 billion, up 23 percent year on year, or 9 percent, after excluding retroactive payments.

Retroactive payments and cost of living spending reached $350 million up to October 2012, from $130 million during the same period in 2011.

Salary expenditures’ share of the total primary spending fell from 32 percent in the period of Jan.-Oct. 2011 to 31 percent in the same period of 2012.