June 09, 2004 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Factory productivity in the first quarter

Productivity in the manufacturing sector—as measured by output per hour of all persons—rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.9 percent in the first quarter of 2004.

[Chart data—TXT]

Factory output grew 5.8 percent and working hours of all persons increased 2.8 percent in the first quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2003, productivity had risen 4.8 percent, reflecting output growth of 6.2 percent and hours growth of 1.4 percent.

In durable goods industries, productivity grew 5.9 percent in the first quarter, as output expanded 9.3 percent and hours rose 3.2 percent. In nondurable goods industries, productivity fell 0.7 percent, as output grew 1.4 percent and hours grew faster, 2.1 percent.

These data are from the BLS Productivity and Costs program. Data are subject to revision. For more information, see the "Productivity and Costs, First Quarter 2004, Revised" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 04-995.