U.S. productivity slumps in first quarter
Source: MarketWatch
U.S. productivity slumps in first quarter
Published: May 4, 2017 8:40 a.m. ET
The 0.6% decline in U.S. productivity is the biggest in a year
By Jeffry Bartash Reporter
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) The productivity of American firms and their employees fell in the first quarter at the fastest rate in a year, reflecting a cutback in the amount of goods and services made available to customers.
U.S. productivity the key to a higher standard of living declined at a 0.6% annual pace in the first three months of 2017, the government said Thursday. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast no change.
....
The decline in productivity from the fourth quarters revised 1.8% clip mostly stemmed from a lower tempo at many businesses. Companies sought to reduce inventory levels to avoid getting stuck with unsold goods or products theyd have to discount steeply to move.
{snip interactive chart}
The increase in output, or how many goods and services companies produce, rose just 1% after a 2.7% gain in the fourth quarter. ... Yet workers put in even more time on the job. Hours worked increased 1.6%. ... The combination of slower production and higher hours cause unit-labor costs to rise to a 3% rate from 1.3% at the end of 2016.
Read more: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-productivity-slumps-in-first-quarter-2017-05-04
Productivity declines 0.6% in 1st quarter 2017 (annual rate); unit labor costs rise 3.0%
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/prod2.nr0.htm
Economic News Release USDL 17-0550
Productivity and Costs, First Quarter 2017, Preliminary
Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 a.m. (EDT) Thursday, May 4, 2017
Technical information: (202) 691-5606 dprweb@bls.gov www.bls.gov/lpc
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 PressOffice@bls.gov
PRODUCTIVITY AND COSTS
First Quarter 2017, Preliminary
Nonfarm business sector labor productivity decreased at a 0.6-percent annual rate during the first quarter of 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 1.0 percent and hours worked increased 1.6 percent. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) From the first quarter of 2016 to the first quarter of 2017, productivity increased 1.1 percent, reflecting increases in output and hours worked of 2.4 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. (See table A1.)
Labor productivity, or output per hour, is calculated by dividing an index of real output by an index of hours worked by all persons, including employees, proprietors, and unpaid family workers.
Unit labor costs in the nonfarm business sector increased 3.0 percent in the first quarter of 2017, reflecting a 2.4-percent increase in hourly compensation and a 0.6-percent decline in productivity. Unit labor costs increased 2.8 percent over the last four quarters. (See tables A1 and 2.)
BLS calculates unit labor costs as the ratio of hourly compensation to labor productivity. Increases in hourly compensation tend to increase unit labor costs, and increases in output per hour tend to reduce them.
....
Quarterly and annual data for all sectors for recent years appear in tables 1-6 and appendix tables 1-6. Full historical annual and quarterly measures can be found on the labor productivity and costs home page at www.bls.gov/lpc/#data.
______________
The revised Productivity and Costs news release for first-quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Monday, June 5, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).
[center]Facilities for Sensory Impaired[/center]
Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay Services: 1-800-877-8339.
= new reply since forum marked as read
