The data published
by the Federal Reserve on Thursday showed that the U.S. industrial production edged
down 0.1 per cent m-o-m in January 2024, following a downwardly revised flat m-o-m performance (from +0.1
per cent m-o-m) in December 2023.
Economists had expected
industrial production would rise 0.3 per cent m-o-m in January.
According to
the report, the January slip in total industrial production reflected winter-weather-induced
declines in manufacturing production (-0.5 per cent m-o-m) and mining output (-2.3 per cent
m-o-m) that were partly offset by a jump in output of utilities (+6.0 per cent m-o-m) that was underpinned by a surge in demand
for heating following a move from unusually mild temperatures in December to
unusually cold temperatures in January.
Meanwhile,
capacity utilization for the industrial sector dropped 0.2 percentage point
m-o-m to 78.5 per cent in January from an upwardly revised 78.7 per cent (from 78.6 per cent) in December.
That was 0.3 percentage point below economists’ estimate of 78.8 per cent and
1.1 percentage points below its
long-run (1972-2023) average.
In y-o-y terms, the industrial output was
unchanged following an upwardly revised 1.2 per cent climb (from +1.0 per cent) in the previous month.