U.S. Industrial Production Falls 0.2% In May, Below Expectations

Industrial production fell a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in May, the Federal Reserve said Monday. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a 0.2% increase. Production in the first three months of the year was revised up slightly but the data still show that output at the nation's factories, mines, and utilities hasn't increased since November. Output in April was revised down to a drop of 0.5% from the prior reading of a 0.2% decline. Beneath the headlines, manufacturing output was down 0.2% in May after a 0.1% gain in April. Excluding autos, manufacturing was down 0.3%. Mining output declined 0.3% last month, after declining more than 1% on average over the past four months. The slower rate of decrease was in part due to a reduce pace of decline in the index for oil and gas well drilling, the Fed said. Utility output rebounded a slight 0.2% gain after a steep 3.7% drop in the prior month. Capacity utilization dipped to 78.1% from 78.3% in April, indicating little cost pressure on goods prices.