Global| Apr 16 2013U.S. Industrial Production Gain Supported by Utility Output
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Industrial production rose 0.4% during March following a 1.1% February increase, earlier reported as a 0.7% rise. A 0.2% gain had been expected in the Action Economics survey. The gain in overall output reflected a 5.4% rise (10.4% [...]
Industrial production rose 0.4% during March following a 1.1% February increase, earlier reported as a 0.7% rise. A 0.2% gain had been expected in the Action Economics survey. The gain in overall output reflected a 5.4% rise (10.4% y/y) rise in utility output. Factory sector production, however, slipped 0.2% (+2.5% y/y) following its upwardly revised 0.9% February increase, revised from 0.8%.
The drop in factory sector output reflected a 1.3% decline (+3.9% y/y) in production of construction supplies. Consumer goods production jumped 1.2% paced by a 2.9% rise (10.2% y/y) in motor vehicle production. Elsewhere, output was weak. In the consumer products area, appliance, furniture & related goods production fell 0.6% (+1.9% y/y). For business equipment, output ticked up just 0.1% (5.0% y/y). Computer & electronic products output fell 0.8% (+4.0% y/y). Production of chemicals rose 0.2% (1.6% y/y) but petroleum product production slipped 0.1% (+1.6% y/y). Excluding the output of high tech products & motor vehicles, production fell 0.2% (+2.7% y/y).
The capacity utilization rate fell to 78.5% from a downwardly revised 78.3% in February, earlier reported as 79.6%. In the factory sector, the rate fell to 76.4%. Overall industry capacity rose 2.0% y/y while factory sector capacity increased 1.6%. Industrial production and capacity data are included in Haver's USECON database, with additional detail in the IP database. The expectations figure is in the AS1REPNA database.
The growing importance of Mexico in North America's auto production from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago is available here.
| Industrial Production (SA, % Change) | Mar | Feb | Jan | Mar Y/Y | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Output | 0.4 | 1.1 | -0.1 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 5.4 |
| Manufacturing | -0.2 | 0.9 | -0.3 | 2.5 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 5.7 |
| Consumer Goods | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 1.1 |
| Business Equipment | 0.1 | 1.9 | -1.4 | 5.0 | 10.4 | 8.3 | 8.3 |
| Construction Supplies | -1.3 | 2.1 | 1.2 | 3.9 | 5.0 | 5.6 | 3.8 |
| Materials | 0.2 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 3.1 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 8.4 |
| Utilities | 5.4 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 10.4 | -2.1 | -0.2 | 3.6 |
| Capacity Utilization (%) | 78.5 | 78.3 | 77.6 | 77.3 | 78.8 | 76.8 | 73.7 |
| Manufacturing | 76.4 | 76.6 | 76.0 | 78.0 | 77.3 | 75.0 | 71.3 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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