by Calculated Risk on 10/16/2012 09:15:00 AM

From the Fed: Industrial production and Capacity Utilization

Industrial production rose 0.4 percent in September after having fallen 1.4 percent in August. For the third quarter as a whole, industrial production declined at an annual rate of 0.4 percent. Manufacturing output increased 0.2 percent in September but moved down at an annual rate of 0.9 percent in the third quarter. Production at mines advanced 0.9 percent in September, and the output of utilities moved up 1.5 percent. Roughly 0.3 percentage point of the decline in overall industrial production in August reflected the effect of precautionary idling of production in late August along the Gulf of Mexico in anticipation of Hurricane Isaac, and part of the rise in September is a result of the subsequent resumption of activity at idled facilities. At 97.0 percent of its 2007 average, total industrial production in September was 2.8 percent above its year-earlier level. Capacity utilization for total industry moved up 0.3 percentage point to 78.3 percent, a rate 2.0 percentage points below its long-run (1972--2011) average.
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows Capacity Utilization. This series is up 11.5 percentage points from the record low set in June 2009 (the series starts in 1967).

Capacity utilization at 78.3% is still 2.0 percentage points below its average from 1972 to 2010 and below the pre-recession level of 80.6% in December 2007.

Note: y-axis doesn't start at zero to better show the change.

The second graph shows industrial production since 1967.

Industrial production increased in September to 97.0. This is 16% above the recession low, but still 3.7% below the pre-recession peak.

The consensus was for Industrial Production to increase 0.2% in September, and for Capacity Utilization to increase to 78.3%. IP was slightly above expectations (some bounce back from shut downs related to Hurricane Isaac) and Capacity Utilization was at expectations. Overall Industrial Production has moved sideways this year.

All current manufacturing graphs