U.S. Industrial Production Increases in April
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
- Gain is first in three months.
- Increases are broad-based.
- Capacity utilization is highest in five months.
Industrial production increased 0.5% (0.2% y/y) during April after holding steady in both of the prior two months. The March figure was revised from 0.4% while February was revised from 0.2%, according to the Federal Reserve Board. The April increase compared to expectations for no change in the Action Economics Forecast Survey.
By industry groups, manufacturing production rebounded 1.0% (-0.9% y/y) in April following a 0.8% March decline. Durable goods production increased 1.4% (-0.8% y/y) in April after a 1.3% March drop. Electrical equipment & appliances improved 0.1% (-3.6% y/y) but motor vehicle & parts production jumped 9.3% (8.5% y/y). Furniture & related products output weakened 0.4% (-8.8% y/y) and machinery production fell 0.5% (-3.5% y/y. Primary metals production rose 0.9% (2.6% y/y). Computer & electronic component production rose 2.1% (-0.4% y/y).
Nondurable goods production rose 0.6% (-0.9% y/y) in April, reflecting a 0.7% rise (1.3% y/y) in chemical production and a 0.6% increase (0.3% y/y) in petroleum & coal output. Printing & related support activities fell 0.4% (3.4% y/y) while paper production eased 0.1% (-7.5% y/y). Apparel production declined 0.8% (+5.6% y/y) while plastic & rubber product output rose 1.2% (-4.4% y/y). Food & beverage production increased 0.7% (-0.8% y/y).
Utilities output declined 3.1% (-0.4% y/y) in April. Mining activity rose 0.6% (5.6% y/y).
By market groups, consumer goods output rose 0.6% (-0.2% y/y) in April after a 0.8% March increase. Durable consumer goods production jumped 4.2% (-1.0% y/y) as automotive product production surged 8.4% (2.7% y/y). Nondurable goods production fell 0.4% and was unchanged y/y. Business equipment output strengthened 1.2% (0.2% y/y) following two months of decline. Construction supplies production rose 0.4% (-3.1% y/y) while materials production also grew 0.4% (1.2% y/y).
In special classifications, factory output of selected high-tech industries rose 1.5% (1.8% y/y) in April following a 0.3% March increase. Manufacturing production excluding selected high-tech industries rose 1.0% (-1.0% y/y) and manufacturing production excluding both selected high-tech and motor vehicles & parts rose 0.3% (-1.7% y/y).
Capacity utilization rose to 79.7% in April, the highest level since November. A 79.8% rate had been expected. Manufacturing capacity utilization rose to 78.3% last month.
Industrial production and capacity are located in Haver's USECON database. Additional detail on production and capacity utilization can be found in the IP database. The expectations figures come from the AS1REPNA database.
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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