By Rex Nutting
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - With major cost-cutting efforts now in the past, the productivity of U.S. nonfarm businesses slowed in the first quarter from 6.3% to a still-healthy 3.6%, the Labor Department estimated Thursday. Output increased 4.4% while hours worked rose 0.8% in the first quarter. Unit labor costs fell 1.6%, a sign that disinflationary pressures are still strong. In the past four quarters, nonfarm productivity has increased 6.3%, the fastest increase in 48 years.
