US industrial production soars 1.2 percent in May

According to the statistics released by the US Federal Reserve, US industrial production advanced 1.2 percent in May after having risen 0.7 percent in April. As compared to May 2009 levels, the country's industrial production rose 7.6 percent in May this year.
 
Manufacturing output climbed 0.9 percent last month, its third consecutive monthly gain of about one percent, and was 7.9 percent above its year-earlier level. Outside of manufacturing, the output of mines edged down 0.2 percent month on month.
 
As compared to April, the production index for durable goods advanced 1.7 percent in May; most major categories of durables strengthened. Sizable gains were recorded for wood products, primary metals, fabricated metal products, machinery, motor vehicles and parts, and furniture and related products.
 
In May, the capacity utilization rate for overall US industry rose one percentage point to 74.7 percent, 6.2 percentage points above the rate from a year earlier, but 5.9 percentage points below its average from 1972 to 2009.