After reporting a modest decrease in U.S. industrial production in the previous month, the Federal Reserve released a report on Friday showing a substantial rebound in production in the month of February.
The Fed said industrial production surged up by 1.1 percent in February after dipping by a revised 0.3 percent in January.
Economists had expected production to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.1 percent downtick originally reported for the previous month.
The bigger than expected rebound in production was partly due to a sharp increase in mining output, which soared by 4.3 percent amid strong gains in oil and gas extraction.
Manufacturing output also surged up by 1.2 percent in February after edging down by 0.2 percent in January, reflecting broad based strength.
On the other hand, the Fed said utilities output plunged by 4.7 percent, as warmer-than-normal temperatures reduced the demand for heating.
The report also said capacity utilization in the industrial sector rose to 78.1 percent in February from 77.4 percent in January. Capacity utilization had been expected to inch up to 77.7 percent.
While capacity utilization in the utilities sector fell to 76.9 percent, capacity utilization in the manufacturing and mining sectors rose to 76.9 percent and 87.6 percent, respectively.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.