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Economy in Brief
U.S. CPI Unchanged in July with Drop in Energy Prices
Consumer prices were unchanged in July after an outsized 1.3% m/m jump in June...
U.S. Federal Government Budget Deficit Shrinks in July
The U.S. Treasury Department reported a federal budget deficit of $211.1 billion in July...
U.S. Mortgage Applications Rose Slightly in the Latest Week
Mortgage applications increased 0.2% (-62.9% y/y) from one week earlier...
German Inflation Rises
The German inflation rate as measured by the HICP accelerated to 8.4% in July...
U.S. Productivity Declines in Q2, Pushing Unit Labor Costs Higher
Nonfarm business sector productivity fell 4.6% (AR) during Q2'22...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
by Tom Moeller April 15, 2005
Industrial production matched Consensus expectations and rose 0.3% in March following a downwardly revised 0.2% gain in February. The increase was due to cold weather which lifted utility output by 3.7% (5.0% y/y).
Factory sector output fell 0.1% (+4.2% y/y) for the first decline since September. Excluding a 0.9% (20.0% y/y) rise in high tech sector output, manufacturing production fell 0.2% (+3.1% y/y).
Motor vehicle & parts led output lower and fell 3.6% (+2.1% y/y). Excluding both high tech & motor vehicles factory in March, output ticked up 0.1% (3.2% y/y). Output of furniture was unchanged (-0.7% y/y) but clothing output fell 1.9% (-10.0% y/y). Machinery output rose 0.5% (7.3% y/y) and production of electrical equipment, appliances & components rose 0.4% (4.0% y/y).
Total capacity utilization rose to 79.4% as capacity grew 1.2% y/y. Factory sector utilization fell to 78.0% and capacity rose 1.3% y/y.
Yesterday's speech by Federal Reserve Board Governor Donald L. Kohn on the Economic Outlook can be found here.
Production & Capacity | Mar | Feb | Y/Y | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Industrial Production | 0.3% | 0.2% | 3.9% | 4.1% | -0.0% | -0.3% |
Consumer Goods | -0.2% | 0.5% | 2.4% | 2.7% | 0.3% | 1.4% |
Business Equipment | 0.2% | 0.2% | 8.7% | 9.5% | 1.2% | -7.9% |
Capacity Utilization | 79.4% | 79.3% | 77.4% (03/04) | 78.1% | 75.5% | 75.3% |