SEOUL, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's labor productivity retreated in the second quarter due to sluggish exports and weak domestic demand, a government report showed Monday.
The labor productivity index for all industries came in at 105. 4 in the second quarter, down 1.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy. The index, which excludes the agricultural sector, logged the minus growth for two straight quarters.
The ministry attributed the second-quarter fall to fragile domestic demand and slowing exports arising from the protracted global economic slump, but it noted that the second-quarter decline was lower than a 2.3 percent contraction tallied in the previous quarter.
The labor productivity index is calculated by dividing total industrial production by labor input during a given period of time. The index uses 2008 as the base year.
Industrial output for all industries expanded 0.8 percent on- year in the second quarter. The output continued to slow down after peaking at a growth of 12.2 percent in the first quarter of 2010.
Labor input increased 2.1 percent on-year in the second quarter, down from a 5.1 percent expansion for the first quarter.
The labor productivity index for local manufacturers declined 2. 0 percent on-year in the second quarter, but those for the service and construction industries gained 2.5 percent and 11.6 percent respectively over the same period. Enditem
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