Economy-leading productivity performance – that’s long been one of the biggest advantages domestic manufacturing’s champions have long enjoyed over those who dismiss the sector’s importance. So imagine how disappointed I am to report that, by at least one key measure, that lead is gone.
Late last month, the Labor Department issued its latest report on multi-factor productivity in manufacturing. This broadest measure of efficiency is different from and much less current than the labor productivity figures that come out each quarter, because many more inputs are studied. Moreover, detailed data take even longer to issue – which is why these new manufacturing numbers only take us through 2013. It’s also crucial to keep in mind that productivity is one of the most difficult concepts economists study, and in fact, there’s a lively debate taking place right now about whether the government data are significantly understating America’s performance.
Nonetheless, the new figures, which also revise the 2011 and 2012 readings, are unmistakably bad news both for manufacturing itself and for the broader economy it helps undergird.
This post was published at Wall Street Examiner by Alan Tonelson – August 10, 2015.
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