Figures released Wednesday by the U.S. Federal Reserve show industrial production south of the border fell in January as unseasonably warm weather caused a major drop in utilities output, offsetting gains in manufacturing and mining.
The U.S. central bank said its overall industrial production index fell 0.3% last month after a downwardly revised 0.6% gain in December.
Economists had forecast industrial production being flat in January. December's output was originally reported as a 0.8 percent rise. The Fed's measure of the industrial sector comprises manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities.
The bulk of the January decline was due to a 5.7% drop in utilities output because of reduced heating demand. Manufacturing production inched ahead 0.2%, matching analysts' forecasts, while mining output rose 2.8%.
With overall output declining in January, the percentage of industrial capacity in use fell 0.3 percentage points during the month to 75.3%. Manufacturing capacity use rose 0.1 percentage points to 75.1%.
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