A study of Swedish data shows that such changes have raised productivity growth by 0.2 percentage points a year during the second half of the 1990s. 6  2  ITPS (2007). 3  Conway, Nicoletti, de Rosa and Steiner (2006). 4  See, for instance, Crépon, Duguet and Mairesse (1998). 5  Esser, Villalba and Tarantola (2007). 6  Forsling & Lindström (2004). BIS Review 12/2008  3  Organisation important for productivity growth IT is available all around the world at roughly the same price, but the differences are substantial with regard to how different countries and sectors use this technology to make their production more efficient (see Figure 5). The United States and Europe have experienced a similar productivity growth in the IT-producing sectors, but the Americans have had stronger growth in sectors with intensive use of IT. This includes, for instance, the wholesale and retail trade sectors and financial services. Studies indicate that one of the explanations for the United States’ relative productivity advantage over Europe is that the US companies have been quicker and better at adapting their organisations to the new technology. 7 One factor that might contribute to this difference is that the stricter regulations in the labour market in Europe mean that it takes longer time and costs more money to reorganise. Sweden is an exception in this context. We have seen a strong growth in productivity in the sectors using IT at the same time as we have a relatively regulated labour market.
Svante Öberg: Monetary policy and productivity Speech by Mr Svante Öberg, Deputy Governor of the Sveriges Riksbank, at a meeting arranged by Danske Bank, Stockholm, 29 January 2008. *  *  *  Productivity is an important part of the equation when analysing the economy. In the long run, productivity determines most of a country's GDP growth and welfare. In the short term it is an important factor for how inflation develops. It is therefore important for the Riksbank to assess how productivity will develop in future. To create a better picture of productivity and its driving forces the Bank regularly works on further developing and deepening our analysis. For instance, we arranged two conferences on the theme of productivity last year, where the most recent analysis and research in the field was discussed. I intend to take up some of the insights from the conferences in my speech today. Productivity has gone from surprisingly strong to surprisingly weak Over the past 10-15 years inflation has been lower and more stable than before. This is a pattern that can be seen around the world and probably has several explanations. One explanation is that monetary policy has gained greater credibility. Inflation expectations have thus stabilised at a low level, which in turn has contributed to keeping down inflation. Another explanation is that globalisation, that is, increased trade and economic integration, has subdued inflation.