The US Federal Reserve reported Tuesday that industrial production in the US--which includes output from factories, mines and utilities--made its highest advance since December 2010, rising 0.9 percent in July.
Factory activity alone was up 0.6 percent in July, but auto assemblies rose to an 8.7-million unit annual rate in July from 7.9 million units in June, the highest rate since March, as the US auto industry recovered from the parts shortage that resulted from a major earthquake and tsunami hitting Japan in March.
Industrial capacity utilization rates were up as well, rising to 77.5 percent in July from 76.9 percent in June--the highest level since August 2008.