Welcome

The mathematician of the Complutense University of Madrid, José-Vidal Ruiz Varela, argues that Europe must raise its borrowing limit, leaving its deflationary policy.
Cortesía de Investing.com

Agenda Macro

Calendario económico en tiempo real proporcionado por Investing.com España.

jueves, 6 de marzo de 2014

Fourth-quarter productivity lowered to 1.8%

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch)
The productivity of U.S. workers and businesses slowed sharply in the final three months of 2013, according to newly revised government figures
Productivity rose a revised 1.8% from October through December, down from an original estimate of 3.2%, the Labor Department said
By contrast, productivity rose 3.5% in the third quarter
The increase in output of goods and services was cut to 3.4% from 4.9%, largely accounting for the downward revision in productivity
The gain in hours worked was trimmed to 1.6% from 1.7%, while unit-labor costs fell by just 0.1% in the fourth quarter instead of 1.6%
Yet productivity has risen slowly over the past few years in the aftermath of the Great Recession and there’s little evidence that it’s about to sharply increase
Slower productivity growth is harmful to an economy in a number of ways
Among other things, it limits the increase in wages and thus the buying power of American consumers
When they buy less, businesses can’t sell as many goods and services or hire as many workers
In the fourth quarter, hourly wages of American workers rose at a 1.7% annual clip, but after taking inflation into account, the increase was just 0.8%
Both figures were little changed from the preliminary report
In the manufacturing sector, the rise in productivity was revised down to 1.3% from 2%

3 comentarios:

El Genio dijo...

The financial sector slashed jobs in February, more than doubling the number of cuts from the month before, making it the top sector with the heaviest cuts.

Bloomberg
The Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. report on Thursday highlighted the sectors with the most job cuts and saw overall jobs cuts were down 24% compared to a year earlier.

Wall Street cut 9,791 jobs in February, compared to 4,817 cuts reported for January, said the report.

“While some of the cuts in the financial sector were related to cutbacks in mortgage lending operations, a large portion of the banking workforce reductions in February were due to the ongoing shift away from branch banking toward increased mobile banking,” said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

The consulting firm looks at American companies planning jobs cuts.

Wall Street has been shedding jobs since the financial crisis but analysts say this new jobs cut trend will have a profound impact on banking employment levels in the coming years.

“The number of bank tellers and traditional banks will continue to shrink as more people manage their bank accounts over their phones, on their laptops, and at ATMs and kiosks,” said Challenger.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. announced just last month it plans to cut 3,500 in its consumer operations, which would include many from its branches. These cuts are considered proactive moves by the firm in “recognition of the coming sea change in the way people bank,” according to Challenger.

Banks are shifting strategies and technology will replace day-to-day banking, experts predict.

“These are the kinds of cuts we don’t see in a recession,” said Challenger. “These are successful companies taking proactive steps to adjust to new realities.”

El Genio dijo...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Orders for goods produced in U.S. factories fell 0.7% in January, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected orders to fall by 0.6%. Factory orders sank by a revised 2% in December, down from a prior estimate of a 1.5% decline. Orders for durable goods - products meant to last at least three years - decreased 1% in January. Orders for nondurable goods slipped 0.4%.

El Genio dijo...


Lockhart: Tapering of bond-buys should continue

Lockhart: Doubts February job report will be good

Lockhart: No good sense of growth until April, May