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ECONOMIC REPORT: Q1 productivity revised up to 3.8%; Manufacturing productivity revised lower to 2.9%
By Rex Nutting, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 8:31 AM ET June 3, 2004

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - Productivity in the U.S. nonfarm business sector increased at a 3.8 percent annual rate in the first quarter, revised from an earlier estimate of 3.5 percent, the Labor Department estimated Thursday.

The revision was in line with expectations of economists surveyed by CBS MarketWatch.

Unit labor costs - a key gauge of inflation and profit pressures - increased at a 0.8 percent annual rate, up from the earlier estimate of 0.5 percent.

In the fourth quarter, productivity - defined as output per hour worked - rose an unrevised 2.5 percent annual rate. Unit labor costs, however, were revised to a 1.7 percent gain from an earlier estimate of zero percent.

Over the past four quarters, the output per hour of American businesses has increased 5.5 percent, the matching the fastest productivity gains in 31 years. Unit labor costs fell 0.8 percent in the past four quarters.

The revisions show that labor captured a much larger share of the benefits of higher productivity in the past two quarters than previously assumed. But the figures do not change the larger view that most of the benefits have accrued to business owners, not workers.

As a result, inflationary pressures have been reduced, profits have soared and wages have stagnated. The pendulum had swung so far in favor of owners, that even Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan expressed concern.

In the first quarter, productivity in the nonfinancial sectors increased 2.3 percent annualized while unit labor costs rose 2.7 percent. Unit profits in the nonfinancial sector fell 0.9 percent after rising 29 percent in the past four quarters.

Productivity in the financial sector is particularly difficult to define or measure, so economists see the nonfinancial productivity numbers as a more reliable measure of underlying improvements in the economy.

In manufacturing, productivity in the first quarter was revised down to 2.9 percent from 3.1 percent. Unit labor costs increased 3.1 percent, revised from 2 percent.

Real hourly compensation in the nonfarm business sector increased at a 0.9 percent annual rate in the first quarter, down from the revised 3.4 percent increase in the fourth quarter.

The revisions incorporated newer data on output, hours worked and compensation.


ECONOMIC REPORT: Claims show weaker job market; Continuing jobless claims rise above 3 million
By Rex Nutting, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 8:33 AM ET June 3, 2004

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - The U.S. labor market weakened slightly in late May, Labor Department figures released Thursday show.

The average number of new weekly seasonally adjusted claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 4,250 to 341,000 in the four weeks ending May 29, after falling to a three-year low two weeks ago.

Seasonally adjusted initial claims in the week ending May 29 fell by 6,000 to 339,000, slightly above the 335,000 expected by economists on Wall Street. It's the lowest level in three weeks. The previous week's figure was revised to 345,000 from 344,000.

The four-week average is considered a more reliable gauge of the labor market than the volatile weekly number, which is subject to distortions caused by holidays, weather and other one-time events. After sinking by 50,000 between September and January, the average number of new claims has bounced in a narrow range between 334,000 and 355,000 for the past three months.

Claims at the current level around 340,000 are consistent with steady but not spectacular job growth of around 150,000 to 200,000 a month, economists say.

In the first four months of the year, the economy has created on average of 217,000 jobs a month.

The Labor Department will report on May nonfarm payrolls on Friday, with about 220,000 net new jobs expected. The unemployment rate is likely to remain at 5.6 percent, the MarketWatch survey of economists says.

Meanwhile, the number of American workers receiving unemployment checks rose by 65,000 to 3 million in the week ending May 22, a five-week high. The four-week average of continuing claims rose by 22,000 to 2.96 million.

The insured unemployment rate rose to 2.4 percent from 2.3 percent.

The continuing claims figures do not include some 15,000 Americans receiving extended federal benefits, which were available to those who had exhausted their 26-weeks of state benefits. The federal program stopped accepting new applicants in January.

Bouts of unemployment have been unusually long during this upswing in the business cycle, a reflection of the intense pressure on businesses to cut labor costs.

In April, 1.8 million of the 8.2 million unemployed Americans had been out of work longer than six months. The average duration of unemployment fell to 19.7 weeks in April.

[Info.]

8:29am 06/03/04 U.S. Q1 PRODUCTIVITY REVISED TO 3.8% VS. 3.5%
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. Q1 MANUFACTURING PRODUCTIVITY REVISED DOWN TO 2.9%
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. Q1 NONFINANCIAL PRODUCTIVITY 2.3%
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. 4-WEEK AVG. INITIAL JOBLESS CLAIMS RISE TO 341,000
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. WEEKLY INITIAL JOBLESS CLAIMS OFF 6,000 TO 339,000
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. CONTINUING JOBLESS CLAIMS RISE 65K TO 3.003M
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. Q1 UNIT LABOR COSTS REVISED TO 0.8% VS. 0.5%
8:30am 06/03/04 U.S. Q4 UNIT LABOR COSTS REVISED TO 1.7% VS. 0%