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Economic News Release
PRINT:Print

Multifactor Productivity Trends News Release

For release 10:00 am (EDT) March 24, 2020	USDL-20-0494
Technical information:	(202) 691-5606  •  mfpweb@bls.gov  •  www.bls.gov/mfp
Media contact:	        (202) 691-5902  •  PressOffice@bls.gov
	
	MULTIFACTOR PRODUCTIVITY TRENDS – 2019 

Private nonfarm business sector multifactor productivity increased 0.9 percent
in 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. 
(See table A.) This 2019 increase reflects a 2.7-percent increase 
in output and a 1.8-percent increase in the combined inputs of capital and 
labor. Capital services grew by 2.9 percent and labor input–which is the 
combined effect of hours worked and labor composition–grew by 1.1 percent. 
Multifactor productivity was revised up to an increase of 0.9 percent in 
2018. (See table 1.)

Multifactor productivity is calculated by dividing an index of real output
by an index of combined units of labor input and capital services. 
Multifactor productivity annual measures differ from BLS quarterly labor
productivity (output per hour worked) measures because the former also 
includes the influences of capital services and shifts in the composition 
of workers. Measures for the most recent year of this release are preliminary
estimates. See the Technical Notes for additional information.

Private business sector multifactor productivity also increased at a
0.9-percent annual rate in 2019. A 2.7-percent increase in output outpaced
a 1.8-percent increase in the combined inputs of capital and labor in 2019.
(See table A, table 2.) 

Multifactor Productivity Trends

The 0.9-percent annual growth of multifactor productivity in the private 
nonfarm business sector in 2019 is 0.1 percentage point higher than the 
average annual rate of 0.8 percent over the 1987-2019 period. For the period
2007-19, reflecting the most recent business cycle, multifactor productivity
grew at an average annual rate of 0.5 percent as output grew 1.9 percent and
combined inputs rose 1.5 percent. The average annual increase in combined 
inputs reflected a 2.3-percent increase in capital services along with a 
0.9-percent increase in labor input. (See table A.)
	
Multifactor productivity growth in the private nonfarm business sector has 
slowed in the most recent business cycle (2007-19) due to a deceleration in 
output growth and almost no change in combined inputs.

Revisions to 2018 Multifactor Productivity Growth

In 2018, the multifactor productivity growth rate in the private nonfarm 
business sector was revised slightly down to an average annual rate of 0.9 
percent, from an average annual rate of 1.0 percent as previously published.
In 2017, the multifactor productivity growth rate in the private nonfarm 
business sector was revised up to an average annual rate of 0.6 percent, 
from an average annual rate of 0.4 percent as previously published. 
(See table D.)

Labor Productivity Trends

Labor productivity growth can be viewed as the sum of three components: 
multifactor productivity growth, the contribution of capital intensity, 
and the contribution of shifts in composition of labor. The contribution 
of capital intensity grew 0.7 percentage points in the 2007-19 period and 
remains the largest contributor to labor productivity growth in the period. 
The contributions of labor composition decelerated slightly between the 
2000-07 period and the 2007-19 period, to 0.2 percent.(See table B.) 

Capital Services Trends

Capital services in the private nonfarm business sector increased at an 
average annual rate of 2.3 percent in the 2007-2018 business cycle, the 
latest year of available detailed capital data. This is less than half of 
the average annual growth rate of 4.7 percent in the 1990-2000 business 
cycle, when capital services peaked. 

Table A.   Productivity, output, and inputs in the private nonfarm business
and private business sectors for selected periods,1987-2019

Compound annual growth rates


                              1987- 1987- 1990- 2000- 2007- 2017- 2018-
                              2019  1990  2000  2007  2019  2018  2019
                                          
Private nonfarm business1                 
                                          
Productivity                              
  Multifactor Productivity2    0.8   0.4   1.0   1.4   0.5   0.9   0.9
  Labor productivity3          2.0   1.4   2.2   2.7   1.4   1.4   1.9
  Output per unit of                       
    capital                   -0.5  -0.5  -0.6  -0.6  -0.4   0.7  -0.2
                                          
                                          
Output                         2.9   3.2   4.0   2.9   1.9   3.5   2.7
Combined inputs4               2.1   2.8   3.0   1.5   1.5   2.6   1.8
   Labor input5                1.4   2.3   2.2   0.5   0.9   2.4   1.1
     Hours                     0.9   1.8   1.7   0.1   0.5   2.0   0.8
     Labor Composition6        0.4   0.5   0.5   0.4   0.4   0.4   0.3
   Capital services            3.5   3.8   4.7   3.5   2.3   2.8   2.9
Analytic ratio                            
   Capital intensity7          2.5   2.0   2.9   3.4   1.8   0.8   2.1
                                          
                                          
Private business1                         
                                          
Productivity                              
  Multifactor Productivity2    0.9   0.5   1.0   1.4   0.5   0.9   0.9
  Labor productivity3          2.0   1.6   2.3   2.8   1.4   1.5   1.9
  Output per unit of                      
    capital                   -0.4  -0.5  -0.5  -0.6  -0.3   0.6  -0.3
                                          
                                          
Output                         2.9   3.2   4.0   2.9   2.0   3.4   2.7
Combined inputs4               2.0   2.7   2.9   1.4   1.5   2.5   1.8
   Labor input5                1.3   2.2   2.2   0.4   0.9   2.3   1.1
     Hours                     0.9   1.6   1.7   0.1   0.6   1.9   0.8
     Labor Composition6        0.4   0.5   0.5   0.4   0.4   0.4   0.3
   Capital services            3.4   3.7   4.5   3.4   2.3   2.8   3.0
Analytic ratio                            
   Capital intensity7          2.4   2.0   2.8   3.4   1.7   0.9   2.2


1.  Excludes government enterprises.
2.  Output per combined units of labor input and capital services.
3.  Output per hour worked.
4.  The growth rate of each input is weighted by its share of current dollar
    costs.
5.  Hours at work by age, education, and gender group are weighted by each
    group’s share of total wages.
6.  Ratio of labor input to hours.
7.  Capital services per hour.

Table B.  Labor productivity and the contributions of capital intensity, labor
composition, and multifactor productivity to labor productivity in the private
nonfarm business and private business sectors for selected periods,1987-2019

Compound annual growth rates



                    1987- 1987- 1987- 1990- 2000- 2007- 2007- 2017- 2018-
                    2018  2019* 1990  2000  2007  2018  2019* 2018  2019*
                                      
Private nonfarm                       
   business1                          
                                      
Labor productivity2  2.0   2.0   1.4   2.2   2.7   1.3   1.4   1.4   1.9
                                      
Contribution of                       
capital intensity3   0.8   0.8   0.6   0.9   1.1   0.7   0.7   0.3   0.8
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   information                        
   processing                         
   equipment(IPE)4   0.3    NA   0.3   0.4   0.4   0.2    NA   0.2    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   research and                       
   development                        
   (R&D)5            0.1    NA   0.1   0.1   0.1   0.1    NA   0.1    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   intellectual                       
   property                           
   products (IPP)                     
   excluding R&D6    0.2    NA   0.2   0.2   0.2   0.2    NA   0.2    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   capital                            
   services                           
   excluding IPP                      
   and IPE           0.2    NA   0.1   0.2   0.4   0.2    NA  -0.1    NA
                                      
Contribution of                       
labor composition7   0.3   0.3   0.4   0.3   0.3   0.3   0.2   0.2   0.2
                                      
Multifactor                           
productivity8        0.8   0.8   0.4   1.0   1.4   0.4   0.5   0.9   0.9
                                      
  Contribution of                     
  R&D to                              
  multifactor                         
  productivity       0.2   NA    0.2   0.2   0.2   0.1    NA   0.2    NA      
                                      
                                      
Private business1                     
                                      
Labor productivity2  2.0   2.0   1.6   2.3   2.8   1.4   1.4   1.5   1.9
                                      
Contribution of                       
capital intensity3   0.8   0.8   0.7   0.9   1.1   0.6   0.7   0.3   0.8
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   information                        
   processing                         
   equipment(IPE)4   0.3    NA   0.3   0.4   0.3   0.2    NA   0.2    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   research and                       
   development                        
   (R&D)5            0.1    NA   0.1   0.1   0.1   0.1    NA   0.1    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   intellectual                       
   property                           
   products (IPP)                     
   excluding R&D6    0.2    NA   0.2   0.2   0.2   0.2    NA   0.2    NA
                                      
   Contribution of                    
   capital                            
   services                           
   excluding IPP                      
   and IPE           0.2    NA   0.1   0.2   0.4   0.1    NA  -0.1    NA
                                      
Contribution of                       
labor composition7   0.3   0.3   0.4   0.3   0.3   0.2   0.2   0.2   0.2
                                      
Multifactor                           
productivity8        0.9   0.9   0.5   1.0   1.4   0.5   0.5   0.9   0.9

1. Excludes government enterprises.
2. Output per hour worked.
3. Capital services per hour multiplied by capital's share of current dollar
   costs.
4. Information processing equipment per hour multiplied by its share of current
   dollar costs.
5. Research and development per hout multiplied by its share of current dollar
   costs.
6. Software and artistic originals per hour multiplied by their share of
   current dollar costs.
7. Labor composition multiplied by labor's share of current dollar costs.
8. Output per unit of combined labor and capital services.
*  NA identifies where data for the most recent year are not available.

Note: Multifactor productivity plus contribution of capital intensity and
labor composition may not sum to labor productivity due to independent
rounding. Contributions of the components of capital intensity may not
sum to the total contribution of capital intensity due to independent
rounding.


Table C. Real capital services by asset type in the private nonfarm business
and private business sectors for selected periods, 1987-2018

Average annual growth rates

    		                1987-   1987-   1990-   2000-   2007-   2017-
		                2018    1990    2000    2007    2018    2018

Private nonfarm business1	
						
All assets		         3.5	 3.8	 4.7	 3.5	 2.3	 2.8

  Equipment		         4.7	 3.8	 6.5	 4.9	 3.2	 3.9
   
    Information 
    Processing 
    Equipment (IPE)	         9.6	 8.5	12.9	 9.4	 7.0	 7.6
	  
      Computers & 
      related equipment	        15.9	18.4	28.1	14.3	 6.2	 4.4
		 
      Communication 
      equipment			 9.2	 6.3	 8.0	 9.7	10.7	12.2
		 
      Other IPE			 3.1	 2.2	 3.3	 3.1	 3.0	 5.1
	  
    All other equipment	 	 2.6	 1.6	 3.6	 2.9	 1.7	 2.6
	
  Structures		         1.6	 2.9	 2.1	 1.3	 1.0	 1.2
  
  Intellectual property 
  products (IPP)	  	 5.9	 7.8	 7.4	 5.5	 4.3	 5.0
  
      Research 
	     &
      Development	 	 4.4	 5.8	 5.3	 4.2	 3.3	 3.9
	  
      Software			10.2	17.0	13.9	 8.2	 6.5	 7.5
	  
      Artistic 
      Originals			 3.1	 3.8	 3.7	 3.6	 2.0	 2.2
	  
  Rental residential 
  capital			 1.2	 2.0	 1.4	 2.2	 0.0	 0.6
  
  Inventories		  	 2.6	 3.4	 3.4	 2.1	 2.1	 1.7
  
  Land				 0.8 	 1.3	 1.3	 0.7	 0.3	 1.3
							
Private business1				
			
All assets			 3.4	 3.7	 4.5	 3.4	 2.2	 2.8
  
  Equipment			 4.6	 3.5	 6.3	 4.9	 3.2	 3.9
    
	Information
    Processing 
    Equipment (IPE)		 9.6	 8.6	12.9	 9.5	 7.0	 7.5
	
      Computers & 
      related equipment	        15.9	18.4	28.1	14.3	 6.2	 4.4
	  
      Communication
      equipment			 9.2	 6.3	 8.0	 9.7	10.7	12.2
	  
      Other IPE			 3.2	 2.2	 3.4	 3.3	 3.2	 5.1
      
	All other equipment      2.5	 1.3	 3.4	 2.9     1.7	 2.6
   
   Structures			 1.5	 2.8	 2.0	 1.2	 1.0	 1.2
   
  Intellectual Property 
  Products (IPP)		 5.9	 7.8	 7.4	 5.5	 4.3	 5.0
   
      Research
	     &
      Development		 4.4	 5.8	 5.3	 4.2	 3.3	 3.9
      
	  Software		10.2	17.0	13.9	 8.2	 6.5	 7.5
      
	  Artistic 
      Originals			 3.1	 3.8	 3.7	 3.6	 2.0	 2.2
   
  Rental residential 
  capital	 		 1.2	 2.0	 1.4	 2.2	 0.0	 0.6
  
  Inventories		 	 2.5	 2.9	 3.3	 2.0	 1.9	 1.6
  
  Land				 0.7	 3.0	 1.0	 0.7	 0.0	 1.4
  
1. Excludes government enterprises.
							
Note: Real capital services by asset type are not available for the most 
recent reference year. For a brief discussion of methods used in 
preparing these data, see the Technical Notes in this release.

Table D. Previous and revised multifactor productivity and related measures for
the 2017-2018 and 2016-2017 periods                                            

                                                                               
                                                           Inputs              
                                                                               
                          Multifactor   Real value-  Combined         Capital 
  Sector                  productivity1 added output inputs2   Labor3 services
                                                                               
                                    Annual percent change, 2017-2018                                 
Private nonfarm business                                                       
 Revised                    0.9           3.5          2.6       2.4    2.8   
 Previous                   1.0           3.5          2.6       2.4    2.9   
Private business                                                               
 Revised                    0.9           3.4          2.5       2.3    2.8   
 Previous                   1.0           3.5          2.5       2.3    2.8   
                                                                               
                                   Annual percent change, 2016-2017                                 
Private nonfarm business                                                       
 Revised                    0.6           2.8          2.2       1.9    2.7   
 Previous                   0.4           2.7          2.3       1.9    2.9   
Private business                                                               
 Revised                    0.6           2.8          2.2       1.8    2.7   
 Previous                   0.4           2.6          2.2       1.8    2.9   
                                                                               
1. Output per combined units of labor input and capital services.              
2. The growth rate of each input is weighted by its share of current           
   dollar costs.                                                               
3. Hours at work by age, education, and gender group, weighted by each group’s
   share of total wages.                                                       

Technical Notes

Capital Services  

Capital services are the services derived from the stock of physical assets
and intellectual property assets. There are 90 asset types for fixed 
business equipment, structures, inventories, land, and intellectual 
property products. Data on investment for fixed assets are obtained from 
the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Data on inventories are estimated
using information from BEA and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Corporation
Income Returns. Data for land in the farm sector are obtained from the
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Nonfarm industry detail for land is
based on IRS book value data. Current-dollar value-added data, obtained 
from BEA, are used in estimating capital rental prices.

BLS provides additional detail in table C on information processing equipment
and intellectual property products. Information processing equipment is 
composed of three broad classes of assets: computers and related equipment, 
communications equipment, and other information processing equipment. 
Computers and related equipment includes mainframe computers, personal 
computers, printers, terminals, tape drives, storage devices, and integrated
systems. Communications equipment is not further differentiated. Other 
information processing equipment includes medical equipment and related 
instruments, electromedical instruments, nonmedical instruments, photocopying
and related equipment, and office and accounting machinery. Intellectual 
property products are composed of three broad classes of assets: software,
research and development, and artistic originals. Software is comprised of
pre-packaged and custom. Research and development is creative work undertaken
to increase the stock of knowledge for the purpose of discovering or 
developing new products or improving existing ones. Research and Development
also includes own-account R&D for software which had previously been 
classified in software. Artistic originals include theatrical movies, 
long-lived television programs, books, music, and other forms of 
entertainment. Structures include nonresidential structures and residential
capital that are rented out by profit-making firms or persons.

Financial assets are excluded from capital services measures, as are 
owner-occupied residential structures. The aggregate capital services 
measures are obtained by Tornqvist aggregation of the capital stocks for
each asset type within each of 60 NAICS industry groupings using estimated
rental prices for each asset type. Each rental price reflects the nominal 
rate of return to all assets within the industry and rates of economic 
depreciation and revaluation for the specific asset; rental prices are 
adjusted for the effects of taxes. Current-dollar capital costs can be 
defined as each asset’s rental price multiplied by its constant-dollar 
stock, adjusting for capital composition effects. 

Capital services measures constructed for the most recent year are 
preliminary and are based on less detail than the rest of the series. 
These measures consist of 6 asset types as opposed to the 90 asset types
for fixed business equipment, structures, inventories, land, and 
intellectual property products included in estimates for all previous years.
The assets included in the most recent year are structures, fixed business 
equipment, intellectual property products, inventories, rental residences,
and land. Investments, depreciation, and capital income are estimated for 
each of these six aggregates. Capital services are calculated by a chained
superlative Tornqvist index combining stocks of the six asset categories, 
weighted by capital income shares. See the June 2005 Monthly Labor Review 
article, “Preliminary estimates of multifactor productivity growth” 
located at www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2005/06/art3full.pdf. 

Labor Input

Labor input in private business and private nonfarm business is obtained
by a chained superlative Tornqvist aggregation of the hours worked, classified
by age, education, and gender with weights determined by each group’s share of
the total wage bill. Hours paid of employees are largely obtained from the 
Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. Weekly paid hours are adjusted 
to hours worked using data from the National Compensation Survey (NCS) for 
1996 forward and data from the BLS Hours at Work survey, conducted for this
purpose, prior to 1990. Between 1990 and 1995, weekly paid hours are adjusted
to hours at work using a combination of NCS and Hours at Work survey data. 
Hours worked for nonproduction and supervisory workers are derived using data
from the Current Population Survey (CPS), CES, and NCS. The hours worked of 
proprietors, unpaid family workers, and farm employees are derived from the 
CPS. Hours worked data reflect estimates in the March 5, 2020 
“Productivity and Costs” news release 
(www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/prod2_03052020.htm).


The estimates of 2019 hours worked for the private nonfarm business and 
private business sectors are extrapolated from the hours worked reported 
in the nonfarm business and business sectors, respectively, in the
March 5, 2020 “Productivity and Costs” news release 
(www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/prod2_03052020.htm). The growth rate of
labor composition is defined as the difference between the growth rate of 
weighted labor input and the growth rate of the hours of all persons. The 
index of hours worked of all persons including employees, proprietors, and
unpaid family workers, classified by age, education, and gender are weighted 
together using median wages to compute the labor composition estimates 
reflecting the different skillset of the work force. These cell estimates
are smoothed using a three year moving average to address missing 
observations and reduce volatility.

Additional information concerning data sources and methods of measuring 
labor composition can be found in “Changes in the Composition of Labor 
for BLS Multifactor Productivity Measures, 2014” 
(www.bls.gov/mfp/mprlabor.pdf). 

Combined Inputs

Labor input and capital services are combined using chained superlative 
Tornqvist aggregation, applying weights that represent each component's 
average share of total costs. The chained superlative Tornqvist index uses 
changing weights; the share in each year is averaged with the preceding
year's share. Total costs are defined as the value of output less a portion 
of taxes on production and imports. Most taxes on production and imports,
such as excise taxes, are excluded from costs; however, property and motor
vehicle taxes remain in total costs.
 
Capital Intensity

Capital intensity is the ratio of capital services to hours worked in the 
production process. The higher the capital to hours ratio, the more capital
intensive the production process becomes. 

In a production process, profit-maximizing/cost-minimizing firms adjust the 
factor proportions of capital and labor when the price of one factor is less
than the other factor; there is a tendency for the firms to substitute the
less expensive factor for the more expensive one. In the short run, changes
in hours worked are more variable than changes in capital services. Changes
in hours worked in business cycles can result in volatility of the capital 
intensity ratio over short periods of time. In the long run an increase in 
wages relative to the price of capital will induce the firm to substitute 
capital for labor, resulting in an increase in capital intensity. 

Rising labor costs are, in fact, an incentive for firms to introduce 
automated production processes. Industry estimates of capital to hours 
ratios can be obtained at www.bls.gov/mfp/mprdload.htm.

Value-Added Output

Private business sector output is a chain-type, current-weighted index 
constructed after excluding from gross domestic product (GDP) the following 
outputs: general government, nonprofit institutions, private households 
(including owner-occupied housing), and government enterprises. This release
presents data for the private business and private nonfarm business sectors.
Additionally, the private nonfarm business sector excludes farms from the 
private business sector, but includes agricultural services. Multifactor 
productivity measures exclude government enterprises, while the BLS quarterly
Productivity and Costs series include them. 

The output measures are based on the National Income and Product Accounts 
(NIPA) data released by BEA on February 27, 2020. The estimates of 2019 
output for the private nonfarm business and private business sectors are 
extrapolated from the output reported in the nonfarm business and business
sectors, respectively, in the March 5, 2020 “Productivity and Costs” news
release (www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/prod2_03052020.htm). 
 
Multifactor Productivity

Multifactor productivity measures describe the relationship between output
in real terms and the inputs involved in its production. They do not measure
the specific contributions of labor or capital, or any other factor of 
production. Rather, multifactor productivity is designed to measure the 
joint influences of technological change, efficiency improvements, returns
to scale, reallocation of resources, and other factors on economic growth,
allowing for the effects of capital and labor. 

The multifactor productivity indexes for private business and private 
nonfarm business are derived by dividing an output index by an index of 
combined inputs of capital services and labor input. The output indexes 
are computed as chained superlative indexes (Fisher Ideal indexes) of
components of real output.

Research and Development

The stock of research and development in private nonfarm business is derived
by aggregating different vintages of constant dollar measures of research and
development expenditures and allowing for depreciation. Current dollar 
expenditures for privately financed research and development are obtained 
from annual issues of Research and Development in Industry published by the 
National Science Foundation. BLS develops price deflators and estimates of the
rate of depreciation.

The research and development data in the private nonfarm business sector 
presented here show the effect of spillovers from economic units that conduct
research and development. BEA publishes measures of research and development
investments in each industry that include estimates of the direct returns to 
firms conducting such research and development activities. By combining the 
direct returns to firms conducting research and development with the spillover
effect of other firms, a picture of the total overall effects of research and 
development can be drawn.


Further description of these data and methods can be found in 
BLS Bulletin 2331 (September 1989), "The Impact of Research and 
Development on Productivity Growth" at www.bls.gov/mfp/mfparchive.htm. 
BLS measures of year-to-year contributions of research and development to
the private nonfarm business sector and measures of the stock of research 
and development are available at www.bls.gov/mfp/rdtable.pdf.

Other Information

Comprehensive tables containing additional data beyond the scope of this 
press release are available upon request at (202) 691-5606 or at 
www.bls.gov/mfp/mprdload.htm. More detailed information on methods,
limitations, and data sources of capital and labor are provided in BLS
Bulletin 2178 (September 1983), “Trends in Multifactor Productivity, 
1948-81” (www.bls.gov/mfp/mfparchive.htm) and on the BLS Multifactor 
Productivity website under the title “Technical Information About the
BLS Multifactor Productivity Measures for Major Sectors and 18 NAICS
3-digit Manufacturing Industries” (www.bls.gov/mfp/mprtech.pdf). 
General information is available on the BLS website at 
www.bls.gov/mfp/mprover.htm. Additional data not contained in the
release can be obtained at www.bls.gov/mfp. Comprehensive tables 
can be downloaded at www.bls.gov/mfp/mprdload.htm, including data
that links 1948-87 SIC data to NAICS data from 1987 forward. This 
file includes data for the private business and private nonfarm 
business sector. 


Table 1. Private nonfarm business sector: productivity and related measures
for the 1987-2019 period1

Annual percent change from previous year

                                                                              
               Output                                  Combined               
               per                                     units of               
               unit of Multi-                          labor and              
       Labor   capital factor   Value-         Capital capital                
       produc- servic- Product- added          Servic- servic-   Capital      
Year   tivity2 es      ivity3   Output4 Labor5 es6     es7       Intensity8   

1988    1.7     0.8     1.0     4.6     3.4     3.8     3.5       0.9
1989    0.9    -0.4     0.2     3.7     3.2     4.1     3.5       1.3

1990    1.7    -1.9     0.1     1.5     0.4     3.4     1.4       3.7
1991    1.8    -3.5    -0.4    -0.5    -1.6     3.1    -0.1       5.5
1992    4.4     1.4     2.9     4.0     0.5     2.6     1.1       3.0
1993    0.2    -0.3    -0.4     3.1     3.6     3.4     3.6       0.4
1994    0.8     0.8     0.5     4.6     4.3     3.8     4.1       0.0

1995    1.2    -0.9     0.2     3.5     2.7     4.5     3.3       2.1
1996    2.1    -0.2     1.0     4.5     2.9     4.8     3.5       2.3
1997    1.9    -0.3     0.9     5.1     3.6     5.4     4.2       2.1
1998    3.1    -0.7     1.5     5.4     2.7     6.1     3.8       3.8
1999    3.8    -0.7     2.1     5.7     2.1     6.5     3.5       4.6

2000    3.3    -1.6     1.5     4.7     1.7     6.5     3.2       5.0
2001    3.0    -3.8     0.5     0.9    -1.7     4.9     0.4       7.1
2002    4.4    -1.6     2.0     1.7    -2.0     3.4    -0.3       6.1
2003    3.9     0.4     2.3     3.3    -0.1     2.9     0.9       3.5
2004    2.9     1.5     2.2     4.2     1.6     2.7     2.0       1.4

2005    2.2     0.5     1.5     4.0     1.9     3.4     2.4       1.7
2006    1.2    -0.2     0.5     3.5     2.6     3.7     3.0       1.4
2007    1.8    -0.8     0.5     2.5     1.2     3.4     2.0       2.7
2008    1.2    -3.8    -1.2    -1.0    -1.4     2.9     0.1       5.2
2009    3.9    -4.7     0.2    -3.6    -6.6     1.1    -3.8       8.9

2010    3.4     2.5     2.7     3.3     0.5     0.8     0.6       0.8
2011   -0.1     0.3    -0.1     2.0     2.4     1.7     2.2      -0.4
2012    0.8     1.2     0.7     3.2     2.7     2.0     2.4      -0.3
2013    0.5    -0.2     0.1     2.3     2.0     2.5     2.2       0.7
2014    0.9     0.4     0.6     3.2     2.5     2.8     2.6       0.5

2015    1.4     0.5     0.9     3.6     2.4     3.0     2.6       0.9
2016    0.3    -1.2    -0.5     1.7     1.7     3.0     2.2       1.5
2017    1.3     0.1     0.6     2.8     1.9     2.7     2.2       1.2
2018    1.4     0.7     0.9     3.5     2.4     2.8     2.6       0.8
2019    1.9    -0.2     0.9     2.7     1.1     2.9     1.8       2.1

See footnotes following table 4.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics



Table 2. Private business sector: productivity and related measures
for the 1987-2019 period1

Annual percent change from previous year

                                                                              
               Output                                  Combined               
               per                                     units of               
               unit of Multi-                          labor and              
       Labor   capital factor   Value-         Capital capital                
       produc- servic- Product- added          Servic- servic-   Capital      
Year   tivity2 es      ivity3   Output4 Labor5 es6     es7       Intensity8   

1988    1.5     0.4     0.8     4.3     3.2     3.9     3.5       1.1
1989    1.1    -0.2     0.4     3.8     3.1     4.0     3.4       1.4

1990    2.0    -1.6     0.4     1.6     0.2     3.2     1.2       3.7
1991    1.7    -3.4    -0.5    -0.5    -1.5     2.9    -0.1       5.3
1992    4.6     1.8     3.1     4.2     0.5     2.4     1.1       2.8
1993    0.2    -0.4    -0.5     2.9     3.4     3.3     3.4       0.5
1994    0.6     1.1     0.5     4.8     4.7     3.7     4.3      -0.5

1995    0.8    -1.1    -0.1     3.1     2.7     4.3     3.2       1.9
1996    2.4     0.1     1.3     4.7     2.6     4.6     3.3       2.4
1997    2.1     0.0     1.2     5.2     3.4     5.2     4.0       2.1
1998    3.1    -0.7     1.6     5.2     2.5     6.0     3.6       3.8
1999    4.0    -0.6     2.3     5.7     1.9     6.3     3.4       4.6

2000    3.4    -1.3     1.6     4.8     1.7     6.3     3.2       4.9
2001    3.0    -3.8     0.5     0.8    -1.8     4.8     0.3       7.1
2002    4.4    -1.4     2.0     1.8    -1.9     3.2    -0.3       5.8
2003    4.0     0.6     2.5     3.3    -0.2     2.7     0.8       3.4
2004    3.0     1.5     2.3     4.3     1.5     2.7     2.0       1.5

2005    2.2     0.5     1.5     4.0     1.9     3.5     2.4       1.8
2006    1.2    -0.3     0.5     3.5     2.5     3.8     3.0       1.5
2007    1.7    -0.8     0.4     2.4     1.2     3.2     1.9       2.6
2008    1.1    -3.6    -1.1    -1.0    -1.4     2.7     0.1       4.9
2009    4.0    -4.3     0.3    -3.5    -6.5     0.9    -3.8       8.7

2010    3.3     2.5     2.6     3.3     0.5     0.7     0.6       0.8
2011   -0.1     0.1    -0.2     1.9     2.4     1.8     2.2      -0.3
2012    0.7     1.0     0.6     3.1     2.7     2.1     2.4      -0.3
2013    0.9     0.0     0.4     2.5     1.8     2.5     2.1       0.9
2014    0.7     0.4     0.5     3.2     2.6     2.7     2.7       0.3

2015    1.3     0.7     0.9     3.6     2.5     2.9     2.7       0.6
2016    0.3    -1.1    -0.4     1.8     1.8     2.8     2.2       1.4
2017    1.3     0.1     0.6     2.8     1.8     2.7     2.2       1.2
2018    1.5     0.6     0.9     3.4     2.3     2.8     2.5       0.9
2019    1.9    -0.3     0.9     2.7     1.1     3.0     1.8       2.2

See footnotes following table 4.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics



Table 3. Private nonfarm business sector: indexes of productivity and related
measures, 1987-2019 period1

Indexes 2012=100

                                                                              
               Output                                  Combined               
               per                                     units of               
               unit of Multi-                          labor and              
       Labor   capital factor   Value-         Capital capital                
       produc- servic- Product- added          Servic- servic-   Capital      
Year   tivity2 es      ivity3   Output4 Labor5 es6     es7       Intensity8   

1987    58.1    118.3   79.8    48.5    74.3    41.0    60.8      49.1
1988    59.0    119.2   80.6    50.8    76.8    42.6    63.0      49.5
1989    59.5    118.6   80.7    52.6    79.3    44.4    65.2      50.2

1990    60.6    116.4   80.8    53.4    79.6    45.9    66.1      52.0
1991    61.7    112.3   80.4    53.1    78.3    47.3    66.0      54.9
1992    64.4    113.9   82.8    55.3    78.7    48.5    66.8      56.5
1993    64.5    113.6   82.4    57.0    81.5    50.2    69.2      56.8
1994    65.0    114.5   82.8    59.6    85.0    52.1    72.0      56.8

1995    65.7    113.4   83.0    61.7    87.3    54.4    74.4      58.0
1996    67.1    113.1   83.8    64.5    89.8    57.0    77.0      59.3
1997    68.4    112.8   84.6    67.8    93.0    60.1    80.2      60.6
1998    70.5    112.0   85.9    71.5    95.4    63.8    83.2      62.9
1999    73.2    111.2   87.7    75.5    97.5    67.9    86.2      65.8

2000    75.6    109.4   89.0    79.1    99.1    72.3    88.9      69.1
2001    77.8    105.2   89.4    79.8    97.5    75.9    89.3      74.0
2002    81.3    103.5   91.2    81.2    95.5    78.5    89.0      78.5
2003    84.4    103.9   93.4    83.9    95.5    80.7    89.8      81.2
2004    86.8    105.4   95.4    87.4    97.0    82.9    91.6      82.3

2005    88.7    106.0   96.8    90.9    98.8    85.8    93.8      83.7
2006    89.7    105.7   97.3    94.1   101.4    89.0    96.7      84.9
2007    91.4    104.8   97.8    96.4   102.6    92.0    98.6      87.2
2008    92.4    100.8   96.6    95.4   101.2    94.7    98.7      91.7
2009    96.0     96.1   96.8    92.0    94.5    95.7    95.0      99.9

2010    99.2     98.6   99.4    95.0    95.0    96.4    95.6     100.7
2011    99.2     98.9   99.3    96.9    97.4    98.0    97.6     100.3
2012   100.0    100.0  100.0   100.0   100.0   100.0   100.0     100.0
2013   100.5     99.8  100.1   102.3   102.0   102.5   102.2     100.7
2014   101.3    100.1  100.6   105.5   104.6   105.4   104.9     101.2

2015   102.8    100.6  101.5   109.3   107.1   108.6   107.7     102.1
2016   103.0     99.4  101.0   111.2   108.9   111.8   110.0     103.6
2017   104.3     99.5  101.7   114.3   111.0   114.9   112.5     104.8
2018   105.8    100.2  102.6   118.3   113.7   118.2   115.4     105.6
2019   107.8    100.0  103.5   121.5   114.9   121.6   117.4     107.8

See footnotes following table 4.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics



Table 4. Private business sector: indexes of productivity and related
measures, 1987-2019 period1

Indexes 2012=100

                                                                              
               Output                                  Combined               
               per                                     units of               
               unit of Multi-                          labor and              
       Labor   capital factor   Value-         Capital capital                
       produc- servic- Product- added          Servic- servic-   Capital      
Year   tivity2 es      ivity3   Output4 Labor5 es6     es7       Intensity8   

1987    57.5    115.5   78.9    48.6    75.2    42.1    61.7      49.8
1988    58.3    116.0   79.5    50.7    77.6    43.7    63.8      50.3
1989    59.0    115.7   79.8    52.7    80.0    45.5    66.0      51.0

1990    60.2    113.9   80.1    53.5    80.2    47.0    66.8      52.9
1991    61.3    110.0   79.7    53.2    79.0    48.4    66.7      55.7
1992    64.1    112.0   82.2    55.5    79.3    49.5    67.5      57.2
1993    64.2    111.6   81.8    57.1    82.1    51.1    69.7      57.5
1994    64.6    112.8   82.2    59.8    85.9    53.0    72.8      57.3

1995    65.1    111.6   82.1    61.7    88.2    55.3    75.1      58.3
1996    66.7    111.7   83.2    64.6    90.5    57.8    77.6      59.7
1997    68.1    111.7   84.2    67.9    93.6    60.8    80.7      61.0
1998    70.2    110.9   85.5    71.5    95.9    64.5    83.6      63.3
1999    73.0    110.3   87.4    75.6    97.8    68.5    86.5      66.2

2000    75.5    108.8   88.8    79.2    99.4    72.8    89.2      69.4
2001    77.8    104.7   89.3    79.9    97.7    76.3    89.5      74.3
2002    81.2    103.2   91.1    81.3    95.8    78.8    89.2      78.7
2003    84.4    103.8   93.4    84.0    95.6    80.9    90.0      81.4
2004    87.0    105.4   95.5    87.6    97.1    83.1    91.7      82.5

2005    88.9    105.9   97.0    91.1    98.9    86.1    94.0      84.0
2006    90.0    105.5   97.4    94.3   101.4    89.3    96.8      85.3
2007    91.5    104.6   97.8    96.5   102.6    92.2    98.6      87.5
2008    92.6    100.9   96.7    95.5   101.2    94.7    98.7      91.7
2009    96.2     96.5   97.1    92.2    94.6    95.5    95.0      99.7

2010    99.4     98.9   99.6    95.2    95.1    96.3    95.5     100.5
2011    99.3     99.0   99.4    97.0    97.4    98.0    97.6     100.3
2012   100.0    100.0  100.0   100.0   100.0   100.0   100.0     100.0
2013   100.9    100.0  100.4   102.5   101.9   102.5   102.1     100.9
2014   101.6    100.4  100.9   105.7   104.5   105.3   104.8     101.2

2015   102.9    101.1  101.8   109.6   107.1   108.4   107.6     101.8
2016   103.2    100.0  101.4   111.5   109.0   111.5   110.0     103.2
2017   104.5    100.1  102.0   114.6   111.0   114.5   112.3     104.4
2018   106.1    100.7  102.9   118.6   113.6   117.7   115.2     105.3
2019   108.1    100.4  103.9   121.8   114.9   121.3   117.3     107.6

See footnotes following table 4.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics



Footnotes, Tables 1-4

Source: The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) develops productivity measures
using output and compensation data published by the Bureau of Economic 
Analysis (BEA), hours data published by other BLS programs, and capital 
data supplied by BEA and U.S. Department of Agriculture. Also see Technical
Notes in this release.

(1)	The private business sector covers gross domestic product with 
	the exception of the output of general government, government 
	enterprises, non-profit institutions, the rental value of 
	owner-occupied real estate, and the output of paid employees of
	private households. The private nonfarm business sector further
	excludes farms but includes agricultural services.

(2)	Output per hour worked.

(3)	Output per combined units of labor input and capital services.

(4)	Gross domestic product originating in the sector, chained superlative
	index.

(5)	Index of hours worked of all persons including employees, proprietors,
	and unpaid family workers, classified by age, education, and gender. 
	This chained superlative index is computed by combining changes in 
	the hours of each age, education, and gender group weighted by each 
	group’s share of total wages. 

(6)	A measure of the flow of capital services used in the sector. 
	Capital services measure the services derived from the stock of
	physical assets and intellectual property products. 

(7)	The growth rates of labor input and capital services are combined 
	by weighting with their respective shares of current dollar costs as 
	weights, and aggregating into a chained superlative index.

(8)	Capital services per hour.

Last Modified Date: March 24, 2020