Material Is Embargoed — 1999-06-08

The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor today reported revised productivity data--as measured by output per hour of all persons--for the first quarter of 1999. The revised seasonally adjusted annual rates of productivity change in the first quarter were: 4.1 percent in the business sector, and 3.5 percent in the nonfarm business sector. In both sectors, the revised first-quarter gains in output were smaller than those reported initially, and the gains in hours were unchanged; therefore, the revisions decreased the first-quarter 1999 productivity gains. These data do not reflect the employment benchmark of the BLS Current Establishment Statistics released on June 4. In manufacturing, the revised productivity changes in the first quarter were: 6.2 percent in manufacturing, 8.7 percent in durable goods manufacturing, and 2.8 percent in nondurable goods manufacturing. The increase in manufacturing productivity reflected a 1.6-percent rise in output and a drop of 4.4 percent in hours worked.