Revised 2Q Productivity Up 6.6%; ULC Down 5.9%

U.S. nonfarm unit productivity rose at a 6.6% annual rate in the second quarter, higher than a preliminary estimate of 6.4% growth, and following a 0.3% annual growth rate in the first quarter, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported yesterday.

Unit labor cost growth decreased at a 5.9% rate in the second quarter, compared to the 5.8% decline in the preliminary estimate, and a 5.0% rate of decline in the first quarter reading.

Thomson Reuters poll of economists expected a 6.4% rise in productivity and a 5.8% drop in unit labor costs.

The implicit price deflator fell at a 0.2% pace in the quarter after a 0.3% decline estimate in the prior reading for the quarter, and compared to 2.7% growth in the first quarter.

Real compensation fell 1.1% in the quarter, compared to the revised 2.4% dip in the first quarter.

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