Sentence:  Whether or not it is in the industry 's interest to allow the basic wage rate to rise obviously depends upon the extent to which the public limit <WSD>price</WSD> rises in response to a basic wage increase , and the relation of this response to the increase in costs accompanying the wage increase . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold)