Housefurnishing Industry

Following periods of decline, productivity in the housefurnishings industry advanced steadily after, reflecting consumer demand, marketing strategies, and other related factors. The industry comprises some establishments dominated by a fairly small number of large firms. While the large firms account for the majority of industry production and employment, many of the small firms produce specialty items. The industrys most important products are bedroom and bathroom fabrics bedsheets, pillowcases, comforters, bath towels, and other similar textile products.
Since the early, firms have been consolidating and restructuring their manufacturing processes, resulting in an industry with fewer, but larger firms. New, more productive manufacturing equipment allowed firms to increase output more rapidly than employment, resulting in increased productivity. Trends in productivity Productivity in housefurnishings grew at an average annual rate of percent between, compared with percent for all manufacturing. The industrys productivity growth as measured by the change in output per hour reflects a more rapid increase in output percent a year than in employee hours percent a year.
however, productivity declined by an average of percent a year. This period includes the recession from late through early during which.output dropped much more rapidly than employee hours. Even when output began to grow again after, it grew faster than employee hours only, and declined again, while employee hours continued to grow. Steady productivity growth really began after. output increased at an average rate of percent a year and hours increased percent per year. Productivity for this period grew at an average rate of percent a year.