The total productivity of full-time bank financial advisors in the United States dropped by 16% in November.

A report from the Bank Insurance and Securities Research Association (BIRSA) shows that advisor productivity inclusive of recurring revenue declined from $39,199 in October to $32,888 in November. Average transactional productivity was also down significantly, down 16% to $12,230 compared to the previous month, and also down by 16% year-over-year.

The study, which measured the results from 5800 full-time financial advisors at 35 banking institutions, found that revenues for managed money, trailers and transactional business all fell in November. However, compared to the same month in 2013, total productivity was down just 1%.

The research shows that while annuity sales made up half of all revenue in 2009, they have now fallen to represent only 37% revenue in November 2014. BIRSA suggests this may be due to persistently low interest rates, and to the fact that banks have come to rely more heavily on recurring, rather than transactional, revenue.

“While November is traditionally a slow month for the industry, this productivity decline was more dramatic than anticipated across all categories,” comments BISRA managing director Dr. Betty Moon, CFP. “In fact, BISRA research shows that average monthly transactional productivity has remained above $14,000 since 2000.”