US August industrial output down 0.1 pct, capacity utilization 82.4 pct

Output from US factories, mines and utilities fell for the first time since January, declining an unexpected 0.1 pct, the Federal Reserve said.
Factories were using 82.4 pct of their capacity, slightly lower than July's upwardly revised 82.7 pct. Economists had expected an 0.2 pct increase in output and 82.5 capacity utilization for August.
The Federal Reserve keeps a close watch on the operating rate to see if it is approaching levels where bottlenecks could develop and threaten to boost inflationary pressures.
Industrial production has risen 4.7 pct over the past year, while capacity utilization has risen 2.1 percentage points in the past 12 months. Capacity utilization is 1.4 percentage points above the average of the past 30 years.
Manufacturing production was unchanged in August, while mining output fell 0.3 pct and utility output fell 0.8 pct in the month.