2006 Multifactor Productivity Trends in Manufacturing — 2008-05-01

Multifactor productivity, defined as output per unit of combined inputs, was reported today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor for the manufacturing sector and for durable goods, nondurable goods, and three-digit (NAICS) manufacturing industries for the year 2006. 1.6 percent in the manufacturing sector, 3.2 percent in the durable goods manufacturing sector, and -0.2 percent in the nondurable goods manufacturing sector. At 1.6 percent, multifactor productivity growth in the manufacturing sector grew more rapidly than the 0.4 percent increase posted in 2005 (as revised). This occurred as durable goods manufacturing productivity growth accelerated to 3.2 percent from 2.5 percent and nondurable goods manufacturing producitivity fell less, dropping 0.2 percent in 2006 after a 1.8 percent decrease in 2005. The 2005-06 annual changes are summarized in table A and further detail and historical measures are shown in tables 1 through 3.