Manufacturing sector multifactor productivity, 2012

Manufacturing sector multifactor productivity increased at a 0.6 percent annual rate in 2012, offsetting a 0.5-percent decrease in 2011. The multifactor productivity gain in 2012 reflected a 3.3-percent increase in output and a 2.7-percent increase in combined inputs.

Durable manufacturing sector multifactor productivity increased 1.4 percent in 2012, following a 1.9-percent increase in 2011. Nondurable manufacturing sector multifactor productivity was unchanged in 2012, following a 2.3-percent decrease in 2011.

Nine out of 18 manufacturing industries exhibited an increase in multifactor productivity and nine experienced a decline. Of the nine experiencing a decline, four were durable manufacturing industries: primary metals; wood products; electrical equipment, appliances, and components; and nonmetallic mineral products. The remaining five industries were in the nondurable manufacturing sector: apparel, leather, and allied products; chemical products; printing and related support activities; paper products; and plastics and rubber products.

These data are from the Multifactor Productivity program. To learn more, see “Multifactor Productivity Trends in Manufacturing — 2012,” news release USDL‑14‑1549 (HTML) (PDF). Multifactor productivity measures the change in output per unit of combined capital and labor inputs. It 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.