Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization - G.17

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Release Date: August 14, 2020
Revision of Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization Notice Below

Total industrial production rose 3.0 percent in July after increasing 5.7 percent in June; even so, the index in July was 8.4 percent below its pre-pandemic February level. Manufacturing output continued to improve in July, rising 3.4 percent. Most major industries posted increases, though they were much smaller in magnitude than the advances recorded in June. The largest gain in July—28.3 percent—was registered by motor vehicles and parts; factory production elsewhere advanced 1.6 percent. Mining production rose 0.8 percent after decreasing for five consecutive months. The output of utilities increased 3.3 percent, as unusually warm temperatures increased the demand for air conditioning. At 100.2 percent of its 2012 average, the level of total industrial production was 8.2 percent lower in July than it was a year earlier. Capacity utilization for the industrial sector increased 2.1 percentage points in July to 70.6 percent, a rate that is 9.2 percentage points below its long-run (1972–2019) average but 6.4 percentage points above its low in April.

Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization: Summary
Seasonally adjusted
Industrial production 2012=100 Percent change
2020 2020 July '19 to
July '20
Feb.[r] Mar.[r] Apr.[r] May[r] June[r] July[p] Feb.[r] Mar.[r] Apr.[r] May[r] June[r] July[p]
       
Total index 109.3 104.6 91.2 92.0 97.2 100.2 .1 -4.3 -12.8 .9 5.7 3.0 -8.2
Previous estimates 109.3 104.5 91.2 92.5 97.5   .1 -4.4 -12.7 1.4 5.4    
       
Major market groups
Final Products 102.7 96.8 82.0 85.6 93.0 97.2 .8 -5.8 -15.3 4.4 8.6 4.5 -5.9
Consumer goods 105.8 100.1 87.3 90.9 98.7 103.2 1.2 -5.4 -12.8 4.1 8.6 4.6 -2.2
Business equipment 98.0 90.2 69.1 74.0 82.7 86.9 -.4 -8.0 -23.3 7.1 11.7 5.0 -13.9
Nonindustrial supplies 109.8 104.7 92.2 93.9 96.4 97.9 .3 -4.6 -11.9 1.8 2.8 1.5 -9.3
Construction 120.1 115.6 101.8 104.8 106.2 106.7 -.3 -3.7 -12.0 2.9 1.4 .4 -8.0
Materials 114.6 111.3 99.1 96.9 100.8 103.0 -.6 -2.9 -11.0 -2.2 4.0 2.2 -9.8
       
Major industry groups
Manufacturing (see note below) 104.9 99.7 83.8 87.0 93.4 96.5 .0 -5.0 -16.0 3.8 7.4 3.4 -7.7
Previous estimates 104.9 99.6 83.8 87.0 93.3   .0 -5.1 -15.9 3.8 7.2    
Mining 133.0 130.9 121.8 108.0 107.6 108.5 -1.6 -1.6 -7.0 -11.3 -.3 .8 -17.0
Utilities 102.2 99.1 101.0 100.4 102.5 105.9 3.6 -3.1 1.9 -.5 2.0 3.3 .6

Capacity utilization Percent of capacity Capacity
growth
Average
1972-
2019 		1988-
89
high 		1990-
91
low 		1994-
95
high 		 
2009
low 		 
2019
July 		   
2020 July '19 to
July '20
Feb.[r] Mar.[r] Apr.[r] May[r] June[r] July[p]
       
Total industry 79.8 85.1 78.8 85.0 66.7 77.4 76.9 73.6 64.2 64.8 68.5 70.6 .8
Previous estimates             76.9 73.5 64.2 65.1 68.6    
       
Manufacturing (see note below) 78.2 85.5 77.3 84.6 63.7 75.3 75.2 71.4 60.0 62.3 66.9 69.2 .5
Previous estimates             75.2 71.3 60.0 62.3 66.9    
Mining 87.2 86.3 84.3 88.6 78.3 88.9 89.1 87.8 81.8 72.8 72.7 73.5 .4
Utilities 85.2 93.2 84.7 93.2 78.2 76.9 73.5 71.1 72.3 71.7 73.0 75.2 2.9
       
Stage-of-process groups
Crude 86.2 87.8 84.7 90.0 76.4 86.8 87.6 86.4 80.1 73.8 74.3 74.9 .3
Primary and semifinished 80.3 86.4 78.1 87.8 63.9 75.6 75.0 71.3 62.7 63.9 67.2 68.9 .8
Finished 76.7 83.3 77.3 80.6 66.5 74.8 74.0 70.2 58.5 61.4 67.0 70.1 .9
[r] Revised. [p] Preliminary.
Market Groups

The indexes for all of the major market groups advanced in July, though by less than in June. The strength in motor vehicles contributed to increases in the indexes for consumer durables (14.6 percent), business equipment (5.0 percent), and durable materials (3.7 percent). Consumer energy products, business supplies, and defense and space equipment also posted gains of more than 2 percent.

Industry Groups

Manufacturing output increased 3.4 percent in July, but it was still about 8 percent below its pre-pandemic February level. The index for durable manufacturing rose 5.5 percent in July. In addition to the large advance for motor vehicles and parts, increases of more than 6 percent were recorded by aerospace and miscellaneous transportation equipment and by miscellaneous manufacturing. Substantial gains in the past three months have pushed the output of motor vehicles and parts to nearly its February level. The index for nondurables rose 1.3 percent in July, with gains of more than 3 percent for textile and product mills, for printing and support, and for petroleum and coal products. The output of other manufacturing (publishing and logging) increased 1.5 percent.

The output of utilities rose 3.3 percent in July, largely reflecting strength in electric utilities. Mining output increased 0.8 percent. Gains were concentrated primarily in crude oil extraction and coal mining but also were recorded by most other types of mining. In contrast, the index for oil and gas well drilling fell 8.0 percent and was about 70 percent below its year-earlier level.

Capacity utilization for manufacturing was 69.2 percent in July, 9.2 percentage points higher than its trough in April and 5.5 percentage points above its recession trough of June 2009. The operating rates for durable and nondurable manufacturing increased to 68.1 percent and 71.5 percent, respectively. The rate for durables was about 14 percentage points above its April low but still about 7 percentage points below its pre-pandemic February level; the rate for nondurables has risen 4.2 percentage points since April but was still about 5 percentage points below February. The operating rate for mining rose to 73.5 percent in July. However, a downward revision to crude oil extraction in May left the utilization rates for mining in May, June, and July lower than any previous rates in the history of the series (since 1967).

Revision of Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization

The Federal Reserve Board plans to issue its annual revision to the indexes of industrial production (IP) and the related measures of capacity utilization in the second half of 2020. New annual benchmark data for manufacturing for 2017 and 2018 will be incorporated, as well as other annual data, including information on the mining of metallic and nonmetallic minerals (except fuels). The weights for market-group splits of the industry-level indexes will be updated with information from the 2012 benchmark input-output accounts from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The updated IP indexes will include revisions to the monthly indicator (either product data or input data) and to seasonal factors for each industry. In addition, the estimation methods for some series may be changed. Any modifications to the methods for estimating the output of an industry will affect the index from 1972 to the present.

Capacity and capacity utilization will be revised to incorporate data for manufacturing through the fourth quarter of 2019 from the U.S. Census Bureau's Quarterly Survey of Plant Capacity Utilization, along with new data on capacity from the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Department of Energy, and other organizations.

Release Dates for 2021

In 2021, the G.17 release on Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization will be published at 9:15 a.m. on January 15, February 17, March 16, April 15, May 14, June 15, July 15, August 17, September 15, October 18, November 16, and December 16.

G.17 Release Tables:

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Last Update: August 14, 2020