South Korea's labor productivity improved from a year earlier in the third quarter on gains in the service and manufacturing sectors, the government said Tuesday.

The labor productivity index rose 1.4 percent on-year to 101 in the three months ended Sept. 30, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

This marked the eighth straight quarter that the index has increased on a year-on-year basis.

Labor productivity is measured by dividing total industrial output by total labor input, with that of 2010 serving as a baseline of 100.

In the July-September period, the country's overall labor input gained 0.4 percent on-year despite a 0.7 percent increase in the total number of workers as the average work hours were cut by 0.3 percent, the ministry said.

The total industrial output rose 1.7 percent on-year over the cited period.

"The rise in overall industrial output was further boosted in the third quarter on growing exports, while investment and domestic consumption also increased," it said in a press release.

The labor productivity of the service sector improved by the largest margin of 2.3 percent on-year in the third quarter, with that of the manufacturing industry gaining 0.7 percent.

The construction sector, on the other hand, saw its labor productivity drop by 3.9 percent amid a prolonged slump in the real estate market. (Yonhap)