INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION AND CAPACITY UTILIZATION
[2004 Revision Notice Below]

Industrial production rose 0.7 percent in October after having edged up 0.1 percent in September. At 117.6 percent of its 1997 average, the October index was 5.2 percent higher than its year-ago level. Manufacturing output increased 0.7 percent in October, and output gains were broadly based across industries. The indexes for mining and utilities also climbed 0.7 percent. Part of the increase in production appears to reflect a partial bounceback from the restraining effects of the recent hurricanes, although the exact magnitude of the contribution is difficult to estimate. The rate of capacity utilization for total industry rose 0.4 percentage point, to 77.7 percent, a level 3.4 percentage points below its 1972-2003 average.

r  Revised.  p  Preliminary.

       The statistics in this release cover output, capacity, and capacity utilization in the

industrial sector, which the Federal Reserve defines as manufacturing, mining, and electric and

gas utilities.  Manufacturing comprises those industries included in the North American Industry

Classification System, or NAICS, manufacturing plus the logging and newspaper, periodical,

book and directory publishing industries that have traditionally been considered manufacturing and included

in the industrial sector.

Market Groups

The output of consumer goods increased 0.6 percent in October. The index for durable consumer goods rose 1.6 percent, thereby reversing most of the previous month's decline. Gains were posted in all major categories, most notably home electronics and automotive products. The output of consumer non-energy nondurables edged up for the second consecutive month after more rapid gains in July and August. Increases for paper products and for foods and tobacco more than offset small declines in clothing and in chemical products. The production of consumer energy products rose 1 percent.

The index for business equipment increased 0.5 percent in October. The production indexes for transit equipment, information processing equipment, and industrial and other equipment all moved up for the second consecutive month. The production of defense and space equipment edged down but remained 5.2 percent above its year-ago level. The output of construction supplies moved up 1 percent, and the output of business supplies climbed 0.6 percent. Materials output rose 0.9 percent in October, a move that reflected increases in most major categories.

Industry Groups

The rise of 0.7 percent in manufacturing output in October resulted from a 1.0 percent increase in durables, a 0.4 percent increase in nondurables, and a 0.6 percent increase in non-NAICS manufacturing (logging and publishing). Among durables, the production of motor vehicles and parts gained 2.3 percent, and the output indexes for most other major industries moved up substantially; machinery output increased just slightly, and only the index for electrical equipment, appliances, and components edged down. Among nondurables, the largest gains were in petroleum refining and in plastics and rubber products. Nondurable industries that also registered substantial output gains included textile and product mills and paper. The production of apparel and leather goods was unchanged, and the index for printing and support declined. The overall factory operating rate climbed 0.4 percentage point, to 76.8 percent, a level 3.2 percentage points below its 1972-2003 average.

The increase of 0.7 percent in output at utilities in October was due entirely to higher output at electric utilities; output at natural gas utilities declined for a second consecutive month. Among the mining categories, natural gas extraction reversed about one-half of its September decline, while total crude oil extraction edged down further.

Capacity utilization for industries in the crude stage of processing increased 0.7 percentage point, to 83.5 percent. The utilization rate for industries in the primary and semifinished stages increased 0.5 percentage point, to 79.7 percent, and the utilization rate for finished goods producers increased 0.4 percentage point, to 74.6 percent.

Revision of Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization

The Federal Reserve Board will announce by the end of this week the date of the upcoming annual revision to the index of industrial production (IP), the related measures of capacity and capacity utilization, and the data on industrial use of electric power. Comprehensive source data from the Census Bureau's 2002 Economic Census are now available. In addition to these data, the revised IP indexes will incorporate data from selected editions of the Census Bureau's 2002 and 2003 Current Industrial Reports. Annual data from the U.S. Geological Survey regarding metallic and nonmetallic minerals (except fuels) for 2002 and 2003 will also be introduced. The updating will also include revisions to the monthly indicator for each industry (either physical product data, production-worker hours, or electric power usage) and revisions to seasonal factors.

Capacity and capacity utilization will be revised to incorporate preliminary data from the Census Bureau's 2003 Survey of Plant Capacity, which covers manufacturing, along with new data on capacity from the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Department of Energy, and other organizations. The statistics on the industrial use of electric power will incorporate additional information received from utilities for the past few years and will include available data from the 2002 Economic Census.

Once the revision is published, it will be made available on the Board's website at www.federalreserve.gov/releases/G17. The revised data will also be available through the website of the Department of Commerce. Further information on these revisions is available from the Board's Industrial Output Section (telephone 202-452-3197).

G.17 Release Tables:

Ascii	Screen reader	Summary: Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization
Chart		Chart 1: Industrial Production, Capacity, and Capacity Utilization
Chart		Chart 2: Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization
Chart		Chart 3: Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization, High Technology Industries
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 1:Industrial Production: Market and Industry Groups (percent change)
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 2:Industrial Production: Special Aggregates and Selected Detail (percent change)
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 3: Motor Vehicle Assemblies
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 4: Industrial Production Indexes: Market and Industry Group Summary
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 5: Industrial Production Indexes: Special Aggregates
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 6: Diffusion Indexes of Industrial Production
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 7: Capacity Utilization: Manufacturing, Mining, and Utilities
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 8: Industrial Capacity: Manufacturing, Mining, and Utilities (percent change)
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 9: Industrial Production: Gross Value of Products and Nonindustrial Supplies
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 10: Gross-Value-Weighted Industrial Production: Stage-of-Process Groups
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 11: Electric Power Use: Manufacturing and Mining
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 12: Historical Statistics for IP, Capacity, and Utilization: Total Industry
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 13: Historical Statistics for IP, Capacity, and Utilization: Manufacturing
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 14: Historical Statistics for IP, Capacity, and Utilization: Total Industry excluding Selected High-Technology Industries
Ascii	Screen reader	Table 15: Historical Statistics for IP, Capacity, and Utilization: Manufacturing excluding Selected High-Technology Industries

Release dates | Historical data | Documentation
Current Monthly Release   Other formats: ASCII | PDF (144 KB)
Supplemental Monthly Release   Other formats: ASCII | PDF (144 KB)
Annual Revision Release   Other formats: ASCII | PDF (150 KB)

Statistical releases