06.05.202112:41:00UTC+00U.S. Labor Productivity Rebounds More Than Expected In Q1

After reporting a sharp pullback in U.S. labor productivity in the previous quarter, the Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing productivity rebounded by more than expected in the first quarter of 2021.

The Labor Department said labor productivity spiked by 5.4 percent in the first quarter after tumbling by a revised 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Economists had expected productivity to surge up by 4.3 percent compared to the 4.2 percent nosedive that had been reported for the previous quarter.

Meanwhile, the report showed unit labor costs edged down by 0.3 percent in the first quarter after soaring by a revised 5.6 percent in the fourth quarter.

Unit labor costs were expected to slump by 1.0 percent compared to the 6.0 percent jump that had been reported for the previous quarter.