Growth in GDP per capita, productivity and ULC, 2015

Description

The OECD Productivity Database aims at providing users with the most comprehensive and the latest productivity estimates. The update cycle is on a rolling basis, i.e. each variable in the dataset is made publicly available as soon as it is updated in the sources databases. However, some time lag may arise which affects individual series and/or individual countries for two reasons: First, hours worked data from the OECD Employment Outlook are typically updated less frequently than the OECD Annual National Accounts Database. Second, source data for capital services are typically available in annual national accounts with a lag. Labour productivity is a key driver of economic growth and changes in living standards, as measured notably by growth in GDP per capita. Labour productivity growth means a higher level of output for every hour worked. This can be achieved if more capital is used in production or through improved overall efficiency with which labour and capital are used together, i.e., higher multifactor productivity growth (MFP). Labour productivity is also a key driver of international competitiveness, e.g. as measured by Unit Labour Costs (ULC).