U.S. 4th-quarter productivity revised up to 0.9% (by Jeffry Bartash)

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. productivity was a touch higher in the fourth quarter of 2011 than originally reported, but the cost of producing goods and services jumped because of a sharp increase in hourly wages, according to revised government data. The Labor Department on Wednesday said productivity climbed 0.9% in the final three months of 2011, up from an initial estimate of 0.7%. That matched the forecast of economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The amount of goods and services produced, known as real output, grew at an annual rate of 3.7%, slightly higher than the original estimate of 3.6%. Hours worked rose 2.7%, slightly less than the initial 2.9% estimate. Yet hourly compensation, adjusted for inflation jumped 2.8%, sharply higher compared to the initial reading of 1.9%. As a result, unit-labor costs also went up 2.8% instead of 1.2% as previously estimated. Revised unit-labor costs had been forecast to rise 1.9%. In the third quarter, meanwhile, productivity was revised down to 1.8% from 1.9%. And productivity for 2011 was revised down to 0.4% from 0.7%, marking the smallest annual increase since 1995.