MW: U.S. Dec. industrial production down 2%, down 11.5% in Q4
The output of the nation's factories, mines and utilities plunged 2.0% in December, the Federal Reserve said Friday. Output has fallen in four of the last five months. The figures were weaker than forecast by economists surveyed by MarketWatch, who were looking for output to fall 1.2%. Output in November was also much weaker than previously thought. Output fell 1.3% in November, more than double the 0.6% drop initially estimated. Recovery from a strike at Boeing Co ) offset some of the weakness. Capacity utilization - a gauge of inflationary pressures -- fell to 73.6% from 75.2%. This is the lowest level since December 2001. Industrial output fell at an 11.5% rate in the fourth quarter. Output was down 1.8% in 2008.
