Comparative Levels of Manufacturing Productivity in Postwar Europe: Measurement and Comparisons.

In this paper, comparative levels of productivity in the manufacturing sectors of France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States are measured on the basis of the "industry of origin" approach. Value added for each country is converted to a common currency by an average ratio of the ex-factory value for identical products. Inputs are either estimated as person-hours worked or as "composite units of labor and capital" Among other things, the results confirm the undisputed productivity leadership of the United States and the improvement of the comparative productivity level in British manufacturing during the 1980s. Copyright 1990 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd