Posted March 17, 2011
February industrial production stumbles
Industrial production declined 0.1 percent in February after having risen 0.3 percent in January, according to the Federal Reserve Board.
In February, manufacturing output rose 0.4 percent, and over the past 12 months the level of factory production has climbed almost 7 percent. Capacity utilization for manufacturing moved up 0.2 percentage point to 74.3 percent, a rate 4.8 percentage points below its average from 1972 to 2010 but almost 9 percentage points above its trough in June 2009.
At 95.5 percent of its 2007 average, total industrial production was 5.6 percent above its year-earlier level. The capacity utilization rate for total industry edged down 0.1 percentage point to 76.3 percent, a rate 4.2 percentage points below its average from 1972 to 2010.
