US productivity slows in 3rd quarter

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. productivity slowed in the summer, while labor costs rebounded yet stayed at a level suggesting only modest inflation pressures.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said that the productivity gain for the third quarter was much better than expected but described the long-term trend as disappointing.

Productivity saw a jump for a decade starting in 1995, gains that were attributed to improvements in computer software and the introduction of a number of high-tech products that helped workers do their jobs more efficiently.