US industrial output gains 1 percent in February
March 16, 2007
Industrial output in the United States was up by 1 percent in February, much better growth than had been anticipated by analysts, who had only expected output to be up by 0.2 percent in the month. In addition, December’s rise in output was revised upward, and January’s decline was revised to show only a 0.3 percent drop rather than the previously reported 0.5 percent decline. February’s gain was the largest in a year and a quarter.
Manufacturing output as a whole was 0.4 percent higher, while output minus vehicles and parts for vehicles was up 0.8 percent. Motor vehicle and parts production was up 3.1 percent from the January reading, but was still 3.3 percent lower than February 2006. In other sectors, mining production was 0.1 percent higher in February, while utility output was 6.7 percent higher. High-tech output was up 3.2 percent in February from January, and added 29.4 percent compared to the same month last year.
Factories, mines, and utilities in the United States worked at 82 percent of capacity in February, higher than the 81.3 percent that analysts had expected. Manufacturers worked at 80.1 percent of capacity, while utilities were at 90.4 percent of capacity and mining produced at 91.2 percent of capacity. Mining capacity use was the same as in January, while utilities had worked at 84.8 percent in January and manufacturers had used 79.9 percent of their capacity in the first month of the year.