Industrial Production Held Steady in February

Washington, DC, March 17, 2017—Industrial production was unchanged in February following a 0.1% decrease in January.

In February, manufacturing output moved up 0.5% for its sixth consecutive monthly increase. Mining output jumped 2.7%, but the index for utilities fell 5.7%, as continued unseasonably warm weather further reduced demand for heating.

At 104.7% of its 2012 average, total industrial production in February was 0.3% above its level of a year earlier. Capacity utilization for the industrial sector declined 0.1 percentage point in February to 75.4%, a rate that is 4.5 percentage points below its long-run (1972–2016) average.