U.S. industrial production was flat during April following two straight monthly increases, according to Federal Reserve data released May 16.

The Fed’s latest Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization report showed that monthly industrial production was unchanged vs. March, missing a 0.1% uptick expected from economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal.

April’s total index of 102.8% of its 2017 average was dragged down by a 0.3% month-to-month decline in manufacturing and a 0.6% drop in the index for mining, while utilities jumped 2.8%.

Year-over-year, total industrial production fell 0.4%, likewise hampered by a 0.5% slide in manufacturing and 1.3% drop in mining, while utilities jumped 2.3%.

Total U.S. capacity utilization dipped 0.1% in April month-to-month to 78.4% of its long-run (1972-2023) average, but improved 1.4% year-over-year. Capacity utilization for manufacturing moved down 0.3 percentage points in April to 76.9%, a rate that is 1.3 points below its long-run average. 

Market Groups

The Fed detailed that major groups posted mixed results in April. The index for durable consumer goods fell 1.5%, weighed down by a 1.8% decline in the output of automotive products. The index for construction supplies dropped 1.0%, and the index for business equipment decreased 0.5%. Meanwhile, the index for nondurable consumer goods rose 0.5% in April, as a 0.9% gain in the non-energy component outweighed a 0.2% decrease in the energy component. The output of defense and space equipment rose 0.8%, and the output of business supplies increased 0.2%.

Industry Groups

Manufacturing output decreased 0.3% in April month-to-month and was 0.5 points below its year-earlier level. The index for durable manufacturing declined 0.5% in April month-to-month, while the index for nondurable manufacturing edged down 0.1%, and the index for other manufacturing (publishing and logging) rose 0.3%.

Most industry groups within durable manufacturing posted declines in April month-to-month. The largest declines were in the indexes for motor vehicles and parts, for electrical equipment, appliances, and components, and for wood products, which fell 2.0%, 1.9% and 1.6%, respectively. Primary metals (1.0%), computer and electronic products (0.6%), and aerospace and miscellaneous transportation equipment (0.9%) were the only groups that posted increases. Within nondurables, the output of petroleum and coal products dropped 4.4%; the other nondurable categories posted gains.

Mining output decreased 0.6% in April month-to-month, largely because of an 18.1% decline in the index for coal mining. The output of utilities increased 2.8%.