US Productivity growth barely rebounded in Q3 (+0.3% QoQ vs -4.1% QoQ in Q2), but this was slower than the 0.5% QoQ expected, after two quarters of huge weakness...
On a YoY basis, US Productivity is down for the 3rd straight quarter (and 4th quarter of the last 5)...
On the mirror image of productivity, unit labor costs rose 3.5% QoQ (a notable slowing from the 8.9% QoQ growth in Q2). This was the 6th quarter in a row of rising unit labor costs (but was less than the +4.0% QoQ expected)...
However, on a YoY basis, that is the fastest growth since Q3 1982...
Simply put, we can't have job growth and solid productivity when you make up numbers all the time
