Productivity And Costs — 1996-04-10

The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor today reported revised fourth-quarter seasonally-adjusted annual rates of productivity change--as measured by output per hour of all persons--and revised annual changes for the full year 1995. In the fourth quarter, productivity fell in both the business and nonfarm business sectors. Percent changes in business and nonfarm business productivity were: For the year 1995, productivity increases in both sectors were somewhat greater than in 1994. Fourth-quarter productivity and related measures are summarized in table A and appear in detail in tables 1 through 5. Manufacturing productivity grew at a 2.9 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter as output increased 1.3 percent but hours of all persons declined 1.5 percent (table A). On an annual basis, manufacturing productivity increased 3.7 percent, somewhat less than the 4.2 percent increase recorded in 1994. Output and hours in manufacturing, which includes about 19 percent of U.S.