August 08, 2001 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Manufacturing productivity falls for second quarter in a row

Manufacturing productivity, as measured by output per hour, fell at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.2 percent in the second quarter of 2001, after falling 3.6 percent in the previous quarter. These were the first consecutive declines in manufacturing productivity since the second and third quarters of 1993.

Growth in output per hour of all persons, manufacturing, seasonally adjusted, 1999 III-2001 II (percent change from previous quarter at annual rate)
[Chart data—TXT]

The decline in productivity in the second quarter of 2001 reflected a 5.8-percent drop in output and a 5.6-percent drop in hours of all persons (seasonally adjusted annual rates). In the previous quarter, output fell 8.1 percent and hours dropped 4.7 percent.

These data are a product of the BLS Quarterly Labor Productivity program. Data are subject to revision. Additional information is available in Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2001 (preliminary) news release USDL 01-248.