Manufacturing Productivity Levels in France and the United Kingdom

Abstract

This article compares the output per person-hour worked in the manufacturing sectors of France and the United Kingdom. Estimates are provided for a dozen branches using the same procedure as in an earlier comparison of productivity between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, published in the February edition of this Review. The present study shows that manufacturing productivity in France is higher than in the United Kingdom, but the estimated gap between the two countries is not as great as that found in previous comparisons of British manufacturing productivity levels with Germany and the Netherlands. The article also examines the relation between productivity and scale of production in French and British manufacturing.

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