MW: U.S. Sept industrial output down 2.8%, biggest since Dec '74
By Greg Robb
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The output of the nation's factories, mines and utilities plunged 2.8% in September, the Federal Reserve said Thursday. This is the biggest decline in output since December 1974. The figures were weaker than forecast by economists surveyed by MarketWatch, who were looking for output to fall 1.5%. A strike at Boeing Co
had a negative impact on production, as did Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Ike. The two hurricanes subtracted about 2.25 percentage points from output in September, the Fed said. Factory output fell 2.6%. Capacity utilization - a gauge of inflationary pressures -- fell to 76.4% from 78.7%. Industrial output is down 4.5% in the past year. In the third quarter, production declined 0.6%.
