Updating Salary Survey Data

As a newly hired compensation analyst, you've been asked by the Director of Compensation to assist with the preparation of next year's compensation plan for accountin

jobs. The period for the compensation plan is January $1-$December $31,2018.$ Your assignment is to update salary survey data using the CPI$-$U to estimate new salary

information. Also, assume that it is July $1,2017,$ and you have been asked to submit your analysis within the next two days. The salary survey data were current through

the end of $2016,$ and the initial average salary reported for accountant jobs in the survey was $$50,000.$ The salary data will be $12$ and $24$ months old at the pay plan's

implementation $($on January $1,2018)$ and end $($December $31,2018),$ respectively. You have been provided with national CPI$-$U data, which were obtained from the U$.$S$.$

Bureau of Labor Statistics website.

The percent change in the cost of goods and services between December $2016$ and June $2017$ is

$0\mathrm{.}502\%$

$($Round your answers to the nearest hundredths place.$)$

$($a$)$ The percent change might you expect the average cost of goods and services over the second $6-$month period of $2017$ is $\_\_\_\_\_\_\%$

$($Round your answers to the nearest hundredths place.$)$

Hint: First, calculate the percentage cost change for the period July through December for each of the previous years: $2012$ through $2016.$ Second, take the average of

these five figures. This calculation gives us the average percent cost change. Estimates based on multiple years gives us a more stable picture of percent cost changes.

$($b$)$ The estimated average salary for December $31,2017$ is $${?}_{{?}_{{?}_{?}}{?}_{{?}_{?}}{?}_{{?}_{?}}}$