Growth rate in UK falls to lowest in 15 years

Productivity growth in the UK fell to its lowest rate for 15 years in the third quarter of 2005, according to figures released yesterday.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that output per worker between July and September was just 0.4% higher than the same period a year earlier.

Particularly badly hit were paper and printing and the electrical and optical equipment sectors, which both saw productivity levels fall in the third quarter compared with the same months last year. The manufacturing sector as a whole saw productivity rise by 3.9% in the three months compared with last year.