U.S. industrial production increased by 0.1% last month compared to the previous month while manufacturing output was flat over that span, according to the latest monthly production and capacity report from the Federal Reserve.
The Fed’s industrial production index registered at 102.6 in May, up from 102.5 in April; the May index was up 1.7% year-over-year.
Manufacturing output, part of the overall industrial production index, was 97.9 last month. Durable goods production was up 0.8% month-over-month — with increases in “almost all categories” — but was offset by a 0.9% drop in non-durable production. Within the durable goods segment, primary metals, nonmetallic mineral products, motor vehicles and parts, and wood products each climbed by at least 1%.
The Fed’s utilities index was down 0.4% from April’s level after falling natural gas utilities output wiped out a gain in electric utilities output. The mining index showed 1.3% growth.
Capacity utilization, meanwhile, edged up 0.1% to 76.2 percent; that rate was 3.2 percentage points below the Fed’s long-run average.
