Fed Gets More Dovish Data As ULC Undershoots, Claims Jump Again

After rising the most in three years during the prior quarter, US labor productivity notched another impressive increase in Q4, data released on Thursday showed. The 3.2% jump exceeded every estimate from 42 economists. The range of guesses was 1.1% to 3%. To employ familiar language: This matters. Higher productivity is one way (the best way) to sustain robust growth outcomes without unacceptably high inflation. Employee hours rose 0.4% in Q4, the same release showed. Output increased 3.7%