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

Strong productivity growth in 2000

Productivity in the nonfarm business sector, as measured by output per hour, rose 4.3 percent in 2000. The increase was the biggest since a 4.5-percent rise in 1983.

Annual percent change in nonfarm business productivity, 1991-2000
[Chart data—TXT]

The increase in productivity during 2000 was due to a 5.7-percent growth in output and a 1.3-percent rise in hours. During 1999, productivity increased 2.6 percent, as output grew 4.8 percent and hours of all persons increased 2.2 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, Fourth-Quarter and Annual Averages for 2000 (Preliminary)," news release USDL 01-40.