• Entertainment
  • Finance
  • Marketing
  • Real Estate
  • Technology
  • Social
National Journal Community Of e-Experts
Finance 0

The Big Four Economic Indicators: Industrial Production Up 0.5% In March

By Kurt Osterberg · On April 17, 2018

 

Official recession calls are the responsibility of the NBER Business Cycle Dating Committee, which is understandably vague about the specific indicators on which they base their decisions. This committee statement is about as close as they get to identifying their method.

There is, however, a general belief that there are four big indicators that the committee weighs heavily in their cycle identification process. They are:

  • Nonfarm Employment
  • Industrial Production
  • Real Retail Sales
  • Real Personal Income (excluding Transfer Receipts)
  • The Latest Indicator Data

    Today’s report on Industrial Production for March shows a 0.5% increase month-over-month, which was better than the Investing.com consensus of 0.3%. The year-over-year change is 4.33%, down slightly from last month’s YoY increase. The indicator is currently at an all-time high.

    Here is the overview from the Federal Reserve:

    Industrial production rose 0.5 percent in March after increasing 1.0 percent in February; the index advanced 4.5 percent at an annual rate for the first quarter as a whole. After having climbed 1.5 percent in February, manufacturing production edged up 0.1 percent in March. Mining output rose 1.0 percent, mostly as a result of gains in oil and gas extraction and in support activities for mining. The index for utilities jumped 3.0 percent after being suppressed in February by warmer-than-normal temperatures. At 107.2 percent of its 2012 average, total industrial production was 4.3 percent higher in March than it was a year earlier. Capacity utilization for the industrial sector moved up 0.3 percentage point in March to 78.0 percent, a rate that is 1.8 percentage points below its long-run (1972–2017) average. [view full report]

    The chart below shows the year-over-year percent change in Industrial Production since the series inception in 1919, the current level is lower than at the onset of 8 of the 17 recessions over this time frame of nearly a century.

     

    Capacity Utilization

    The Fed’s monthly Industrial Production estimate is accompanied by another closely watched indicator, Capacity Utilization, which is the percentage of US total production capacity being used (available resources includes manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities). In addition to showing cycles of economic growth and demand, Capacity Utilization also serves as a leading indicator of inflation.

    Print Friendly, PDF & Email

    Share Tweet

    Kurt Osterberg

    You Might Also Like

    • Finance

      STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

    • Finance

      NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

    • Finance

      5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

    No Comments

    Leave a reply Cancel reply

    Top Finance

    • 3 Best Large-Cap Blend Mutual Funds For Enticing Returns 3 Best Large-Cap Blend Mutual Funds For Enticing Returns
    • Hedge Funds In The US Hedge Funds In The US
    • What is Value Chain Analysis? How to Deliver Value & Gain a Competitive Advantage What is Value Chain Analysis? How to Deliver Value & Gain a Competitive Advantage
    • 5 Ridiculously Useful Non-Monetary Reward Examples that Improve Employee Engagement 5 Ridiculously Useful Non-Monetary Reward Examples that Improve Employee Engagement
    • Chart: Amazon’s Dominance In Ecommerce Chart: Amazon’s Dominance In Ecommerce

    New Posts

    • STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

      STEPN Sneaker NFTs Sell For $100, Previously Worth $1200

      June 20, 2022
    • NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

      NFT Prices in Free Fall – 5 NFT Collections to Start Buying Today

      June 20, 2022
    • 5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

      5 NFTs Trending on Twitter Going Cheap to Invest in Now

      June 20, 2022
    • Bill Gates – ‘NFTs & Crypto Based on Greater Fool Theory’

      Bill Gates – ‘NFTs & Crypto Based on Greater Fool Theory’

      June 20, 2022
    • Actor Seth Green Pays $300,000 to Recover his Stolen BAYC NFT

      Actor Seth Green Pays $300,000 to Recover his Stolen BAYC NFT

      June 20, 2022
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy & Policy
    • Sitemap
    • Terms of use

    Copyright © 2018-2021 NJCEE. All Rights Reserved.