US: Productivity likely increased 0.7% in Q1 2018 - Nomura

According to BLS’ advance estimate, nonfarm productivity (real output per hour) increased 0.7% q-o-q saar in Q1 2018, while Q4 2017 was revised up to +0.3%, from 0.0% previously, notes the research team at Nomura.

Key Quotes

“On a 12-month basis, productivity rose 1.3% in Q1, a low reading by historical standards (see Productivity Growth Muted in Q1, 3 May 2018). The final report should reflect some revisions to productivity and unit labor cost estimates based on incoming data.”