This reflected a quicker fall in the manufacturing industry and a renewed reduction in the service economy.
Private sector labour market efficiency continued to deteriorate in Germany and Italy, while a fourth successive improvement was evident in France.
The seasonally adjusted Eurozone Productivity PMI fell marginally from October’s 16-month high of 49.9 to 49.7 in November.
The latest reading extended the current sequence of contraction that started in July 2018, though pointed to a fractional rate of deterioration in labour efficiency.
The headline figure was dragged down by worsening trends in both the manufacturing and service sectors.
Service providers saw a deterioration in workforce efficiency, following a fractional improvement at the start of the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, manufacturing productivity fell to a greater extent in November.
France was the only nation for which data are published to see an increase in private sector productivity during November.
The upturn was centred on the service economy, where workforce efficiency improved for the fourth month running.
Concurrently, French goods producers saw a modest decline in productivity that was nonetheless the jointfastest in the current 13-month sequence of contraction.
Both factory production and employment expanded in November, with the stronger pace of growth noted for the latter.
Once again, the worst trend for productivity was noted in Germany.
The fall accelerated from October, but remained slight overall.
There was a renewed deterioration in labour market efficiency in the manufacturing industry, but the pace of contraction was marginal overall.
Germany’s service sector saw the seventh successive decline in productivity, with the rate of reduction the joint-quickest over this period.
Productivity in Italy decreased only fractionally halfway through the final quarter of 2019 as growth in the service sector partly offset another reduction in the manufacturing industry.
Goods producers saw labour market efficiency worsen to a lesser extent than in October, with both production and employment contracting in November.
In the service economy, the upturn in productivity was only marginal and weaker than seen on average during the series history. ■