Material Is Embargoed — 2004-12-07

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 third quarter of 2004. The seasonally adjusted annual rates of productivity growth in the third quarter were: 2.4 percent in the business sector, and 1.8 percent in the nonfarm business sector. In both sectors, changes in productivity are similar to the preliminary estimates published November 4. Output and hours were revised upwards in both sectors. 4.6 percent in manufacturing, 4.8 percent in durable goods manufacturing, and 5.4 percent in nondurable goods manufacturing. Productivity in the manufacturing sector rose more rapidly than was reported on Nov. 4. Both output and hours were revised up with the revisions to output larger than those to hours. Output and hours in manufacturing, which includes about 13 percent of U.S. business sector employment, tend to vary more from quarter to quarter than data for the aggregate business and nonfarm business sectors.