With mining and utilities output showing notable decreases, the Federal Reserve released a report on Friday showing a much bigger than expected drop in U.S. industrial production in the month of March.
The Fed said industrial production fell by 0.6 percent in March, matching the downwardly revised drop reported for February.
Economists had expected production to edge down by 0.1 percent compared to the 0.5 percent decrease originally reported for the previous month.
The bigger than expected decline was partly due to the steep drop in mining output, which plunged by 2.9 percent in March after slumping by 1.0 percent in February.
The Fed said the sharp decrease in mining production continued the industry's recent downward trajectory, with output falling for the seventh straight month.
The report also showed that utilities output tumbled by 1.2 percent in March after plummeting by 3.6 percent in February.
Manufacturing output showed a more modest decrease, slipping by 0.3 percent in March after edging down by 0.1 percent in February. Manufacturing output had been expected to inch up by 0.1 percent.
Additionally, the Fed said capacity utilization in the industrial sector fell to 74.8 percent in March from a revised 75.3 percent in February.
Capacity utilization in the manufacturing sector dipped to 75.1 percent, while capacity utilization in both the mining and utilities sectors dropped 73.7 percent.
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