Industrial Production Off 0.2%, Capacity Utilizati
Washington, DC, February 15, 2006--Industrial production was off 0.2% in January while capacity utilization soared to 80.9%, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.
The January decline was led by a record 10.1% drop in utilities' output, reflecting unseasonably warm winter weather. It's the biggest monthly decline since the Fed began keeping records 34 years ago.
In January, manufacturing output increased 0.7%. Motor vehicles and parts climbed a strong 2.3%.
The increase in capacity utilization could help pressure the Federal Open Market Committee to boost rates again at its March 27-28 meeting.
Output at mines increased 1.7% in January. Mining output fell 1.8% from year-ago levels. Capacity utilization in mining rose to 87.7%, down 0.4% from January 2005.
The decrease in output in January was the opposite of the 0.2% gain expected by economists. Capacity utilization was expected to rise to 80.8%.
In December, production increased 0.9%, revised up from the 0.6% reported previously. Capacity utilization was at 81.2% in December, revised up from 80.7% earlier.
Production of consumer goods fell 0.4% in January, a level 1.8% higher than a year earlier. Production of business equipment rose 0.9% in January to a level 10.7% above a year earlier.
