Economy: Aug. 10, 2001
U.S. productivity rose as job losses increased in the second quarter of 2001, according to the Department of Labor, which found that productivity posted a 2.5 percent annual pace in the second quarter as compared with 0.1 percent in the first quarter; however, workers’ hours dropped at a 2.4 percent annual rate, as employers laid off 217,000 workers between March and June...June saw a decrease in consumer borrowing, as total consumer credit fell by 1.2 percent—-the first drop in credit in four years—-according to a report released by the Federal Reserve (the report’s numbers do not include mortgages); analysts cite recent job losses as the cause of the decrease...Factory orders in June dropped to the lowest point in six months, according to the Department of Commerce; demand for big-ticket and industrial products, including cars, computers, military airplanes and machinery, fell 2.4 percent to $334.6 billion in June.
