The Employment Cost Index is a measure of wage inflation and can influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decisions. A higher-than-expected increase suggests stronger labor market costs, which can lead to inflationary pressures. This, in turn, may affect the Federal Reserve's interest rate decisions, impacting the broader market and ETFs like SPY. However, the direct impact on SPY's price in the short term is uncertain, as it depends on various factors including market sentiment, future economic data, and Fed actions.