The Fed said industrial output surged 0.9 percent last month also buoyed by robust gains in mining production, after slipping 0.1 percent in November. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast industrial production advancing 0.4 percent in December. It rose at an annual rate of 8.2 percent in the fourth quarter, the biggest gain since the second quarter of 2010. For all of 2017, industrial output rose 1.8 percent, the first and largest increase since 2014. In another report, the U.S. central bank said the economy continued to expand from late November through the end of 2017.
US Industrial Production increased more than expected
- Wednesday, Jan 17 2018
U.S. industrial production increased more than expected in December as unseasonably cold weather at the end of the month boosted demand for heating, but manufacturing output barely rose, pointing to moderate growth in the industrial sector. Strong demand for utilities reported by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday bolstered expectations of an acceleration in consumer spending in the fourth quarter, prompting some economists to bump up their economic growth estimates for the October-December period.