The massive Big John dragline reshapes the rocky landscape in some of the last sections to be mined for coal at the Hobet site in Boone County, West Virginia. (Photo: Reuters)
Industrial production soared 0.5% in March, slightly beating the 0.4% median economic forecast as mining and utilities led the monthly gains. The solid jump comes after a 1.0% gain in February.
Worth noting, the tariffs imposed on aluminum and steel imports don’t appear to have had any negative impact on this report.
The industrial production index advanced 4.5% at an annual rate for the first quarter (1Q) 2018 after having increased 1.5% in February. The manufacturing production edged up 0.1% in March.
Mining output rose 1.0%, mostly as a result of gains in oil and gas extraction and in support activities for mining. The index for utilities jumped 3.0% after being suppressed in February by warmer-than-normal temperatures.
At 107.2% of its 2012 average, total industrial production was 4.3% higher in March than it was a year earlier. Capacity utilization for the industrial sector moved up 0.3% point in March to 78.0%, a rate that is 1.8% below its long-run (1972–2017) average.
