Industrial production fell 0.5 percent in February, largely due to declines in the indexes for utilities and mining. Total industrial production is now 1.0 percent below the year ago level.
The index for utilities fell 4.0 percent during the month, as unseasonably warm weather reduced demand for heating. Output for utilities is now 9.3 percent lower than it was in February 2015.
Mining output continued to fall in February, dropping 1.4 percent. Mining output has fallen at an average monthly rate of nearly 1.3 percent for the past six months.
Manufacturing output increased by 0.2 percent, largely due to an increase in durable manufacturing. Most major durable goods industries, such as machinery, and primary metals either advanced during the month or were little changed.
Capacity utilization fell to 76.7 percent, down 40 basis points from January, but up 1.3 percent on the year.
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