Productivity rises 3.1% in 3rd quarter 2016 (annual rate); unit labor costs rise 0.3%

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Productivity rises 3.1% in 3rd quarter 2016 (annual rate); unit labor costs rise 0.3%

Economic News Release USDL 16-2094

Productivity and Costs, Third Quarter 2016, Preliminary

Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 a.m. (EDT) Thursday, November 3, 2016

Technical information: [phone] [email protected] www.bls.gov/lpc
Media contact: [phone] [email protected]

PRODUCTIVITY AND COSTS
Third Quarter 2016, Preliminary

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased at a 3.1-percent annual rate during the third quarter of 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 3.4 percent and hours worked increased 0.3 percent. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) The quarterly increase in nonfarm business sector labor productivity was the first increase after three consecutive declines in the measure. From the third quarter of 2015 to the third quarter of 2016, productivity was unchanged. (See table A.)
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Full historical annual and quarterly measures can be found on the productivity and costs home page: www.bls.gov/lpc/#data.
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The revised Productivity and Costs news release for third-quarter 2016 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 6, 2016 at 8:30 a.m. (EST).

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[whatthehey]

1. More like it. These numbers have been bad of late before now

Productive labor forces with manageable cost growth helps hiring.