Productivity Up 0.8%; Labor Costs Rise 3.3%

U.S. nonfarm unit productivity rose at a 0.8% annual rate in the first quarter after falling at a revised 0.6% annual rate in the fourth quarter, originally reported as a 0.4% drop, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported yesterday.

Unit labor cost growth increased at a 3.3% rate in the first quarter, down from the 5.7% rate in the fourth quarter reading, originally reported as a 5.8% increase.

Thomson Reuters’ poll of economists expected a 0.6% rise in productivity and a 2.7% gain in unit labor costs.

The implicit price deflator grew at a 2.9% pace, up from the 2.2% growth in the previous quarter. Real compensation spiked 6.6% in the first quarter, compared to the 14.8% jump in the fourth quarter.

Year-over-year growth in productivity rose at a 1.8% rate, following 2.2% growth in the fourth quarter. Unit labor cost growth accelerated to a 2.4% year-over-year gain from a 1.8% rise in the previous quarter.

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