February 25, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Productivity of labor, capital rise again in 1997

Multifactor productivity in the private business sector—the change in output that cannot be accounted for by the change in combined inputs of labor and capital—increased for the sixth consecutive year in 1997. Multifactor productivity rose 0.7 percent, after a 1.7-percent gain in 1996.

[Chart data—TXT]

The overall productivity gain in 1997 reflected a 4.7 percent increase in output and a 3.9 percent increase in the combined inputs of capital and labor. Labor productivity (output per hour worked) grew 1.5 percent in 1997. Capital productivity (output per unit of capital services) grew 0.3 percent.

These data are a product of the Multifactor Productivity program. Additional information is available from news release USDL 99-36, "Multifactor Productivity Trends, 1997."