February 27, 2003 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Productivity declines in Canadian, Japanese, and U.S. factories in 2001

In 2001, output per hour in manufacturing declined in Canada, Japan, and the United States.

[Chart data—TXT]

Labor productivity (measured by output per hour) was unchanged in Sweden, and it grew in the remaining nine economies for which comparable data are available. 

Korea and Taiwan recorded the largest productivity gains, while Canada and Japan recorded the largest declines. In all, the manufacturing productivity estimates were revised upward for five nations and downward for three and were unchanged for four. Data for the Netherlands for 2001 were reported for the first time.

These data are a product of the BLS Foreign Labor Statistics program. Data are subject to revision. This article updates an item that appeared in The Editor’s Desk in 2002: "U.S. factory productivity gain in 2001 was fourth highest". Additional information is available in "International Comparisons of Manufacturing Productivity and Unit Labor Cost Trends, Revised Data for 2001," news release USDL 03-89.