Industrial production rose 1.6% in December, the Federal Reserve reported Friday. That’s the largest gain since July.
The gain was well above Wall Street expectations of a 0.5% gain, according to a survey by the Wall Street Journal.
For the fourth quarter, industrial production rose at an 8.4% annual rate.
Manufacturing output rose 0.9% in December despite a drop in production of cars and trucks. This was the 8th straight gain in manufacturing. Car and truck output fell 1.6% in December.
Mining production rose 1.6%, led by a rebound in the oil and gas sector, after a 2.8% rise in the prior month.
Utility output rebounded to a 6.2% rise as cold weather returned after a 4.5% decline in November.
Capacity utilization continued to inch higher, rising to 74.5% in December. The capacity utilization rate reflects the limits to operating the nation’s factories, mines and utilities. It is now 13.3 percentage points higher than its low point in April.
Manufacturing has been a bright spot in the economy and has rolled along even as the broader economy has slowed. It was easier to re-engineer factory floors during the pandemic than it has been to open the shuttered service economy. Manufacturing is still about 3% below the pre-pandemic peak. At one point, the gap was more than 20%.
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