Industrial production is back in growth mode, according to a new June Federal Reserve report (link opens a PDF) released today.
After flatlining in May on faltering utilities, industrial production picked up a seasonally adjusted 0.3% for June, beating analyst expectations of a 0.2% gain.
By major market groups, consumer goods and business equipment both rose 0.5%, while materials increased 0.2% and construction edged up 0.1%. Separating production by industries, manufacturing's 0.3% gain mirrored that of overall industries, while mining surged ahead with an 0.8% jump. Utilities, down 1.6% in April and 2.8% in May, kept themselves in the red with a slight 0.1% dip for June.
With increased production, overall capacity utilization bumped up 0.01 percentage points to 77.8%. Mining managed the largest gains, up 0.3 points to 87.9%. Manufacturing increased 0.1 points to 76.1%, while utilities capacity utilization fell 0.1 points to 77.6%.
Source: Federal Reserve.
