Updated: 16-Apr-24 09:41 ET
| March Industrial Production |
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| Updated: 16-Apr-24 09:41 ET |
Highlights
- Total industrial production increased 0.4% month-over-month in March (Briefing.com consensus 0.4%) after increasing an upwardly revised 0.4% (from 0.1%) in February.
- The capacity utilization rate hit 78.4% (Briefing.com consensus 78.6%), which was up from 78.2% in February.
- Total industrial production was flat yr/yr while the capacity utilization rate was 1.2 percentage points below its long-run average.
Key Factors
- Manufacturing output rose 0.5%, led by a 3.1% jump in motor vehicles and parts, after increasing 1.2% in February. Durable manufacturing increased 0.3% while the index for nondurable output rose 0.7%. Manufacturing capacity utilization rose to 77.4% from 77.1%.
- Mining production declined 1.4% after increasing 3.0% in February. Mining capacity utilization dipped to 91.0% from 92.3%.
- The output of utilities increased 2.0% after a 7.6% decline in February. Utilities capacity utilization rose to 69.1% from 67.9%.
Big Picture
- The key takeaway from the report is that industrial production remained on a growth track in March, driven by gains in manufacturing output that one would expect to see in a growing economy.
| Category | MAR | FEB | JAN | DEC | NOV |
| Industrial Production | |||||
| Total Index | 0.4% | 0.4% | -0.8% | -0.3% | 0.4% |
| Manufacturing | 0.5% | 1.2% | -1.1% | 0.0% | 0.5% |
| Utilities | 2.0% | -7.6% | 7.6% | -4.0% | 0.3% |
| Mining | -1.4% | 3.0% | -5.1% | 0.8% | -0.4% |
| Capacity Utilization | |||||
| Total Industry | 78.4% | 78.2% | 77.9% | 78.7% | 79.0% |
| Manufacturing | 77.4% | 77.1% | 76.3% | 77.3% | 77.4% |
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