TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia hopes to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund before the end of next month, after reaching an agreement on wages, a government spokesman said on Friday.

On Thursday, the Tunisian government and the Tunisian General Labor Union signed an agreement to increase public sector wages by five percent, a step that may ease social tension.

But the government and the union did not announce any further agreement on the economic reforms needed to obtain a financial rescue package from the International Monetary Fund.