Warm Weather Slows US Industrial Output In December

Faizan Hashmi Published January 19, 2019 | 12:19 AM

Unseasonably warm weather in December held down Americans' use of gas and electricity, weighing on US industrial production for the month, the Federal Reserve reported Friday

Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Jan, 2019 ) :Unseasonably warm weather in December held down Americans' use of gas and electricity, weighing on US industrial production for the month, the Federal Reserve reported Friday.

But otherwise the industrial sector hummed along at the close of 2018, with manufacturing hitting a 10-month high while oil and gas drilling also rose.

Economists have warned that US manufacturing may have peaked but December's numbers, which are subject to revision, suggested a slowdown may not have begun yet.

The Fed's industrial production index rose 0.3 percent, a tenth of a point slower than November but faster than the 0.2 percent economists had been expecting.

Manufacturing output jumped 1.1 percent, the biggest gain since February, driven higher by the key auto sector, which accelerated by 4.7 percent.