Industrial Production on the Rise

In an encouraging sign for the U.S. economy, industrial production increased by 0.7% in February, surpassing what many analysts had anticipated. This growth was highlighted in the latest report from the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors, released this Tuesday.

Manufacturing and Mining Lead the Way

Manufacturing output saw a significant boost, growing by 0.9% from January and by 0.7% compared to the same month last year. The mining sector also showed strong performance with a 2.8% increase month-over-month, although it remained steady on an annual basis.

Utilities Experience a Dip

Despite the overall positive trend, the utilities sector faced a downturn, with a 2.5% decrease from the previous month. However, it's worth noting that this sector still managed an impressive 8.7% growth compared to February of the previous year.

Capacity Utilization Increases

Capacity utilization edged up to 78.2% in February, marking a 1.3% increase from the previous year. This figure, however, is still 1.4 percentage points below the long-term average, indicating there's room for further growth in industrial production.