Manufacturing Output Declines as Broader Industrial Production Holds Steady

Industrial production stayed the same in August, while manufacturing output decreased 0.3% after ticking up 0.2% in July. At 98.2% of its 2017 average, manufacturing production increased 0.9% from August 2025. Capacity utilization for manufacturing was 75.7%, down 0.3 percentage points from July but up 1.0% over the past year. Capacity utilization for manufacturing remained 2.5 percentage points below its long-run average from 1972 to 2025.

In August, production for the major market groups posted mixed results. Consumer goods production ticked up 0.1%, while business equipment output decreased 0.5%. The decline in consumer durables (down 0.5%) was led by the output of home electronics falling 1.8%. Meanwhile, led by a gain in the index for clothing (up 1.8%), the index for consumer nondurables increased 0.3%. Among business equipment, a 0.6% drop in the output of transit equipment led the loss. At the same time, the index for materials stepped up 0.2%, while the index for construction supplies declined 0.7% and the index for business supplies edged up 0.1%.

Durable goods manufacturing decreased 0.5% in August but rose 3.3% from the year prior. In August, the largest monthly loss occurred in furniture and related products and miscellaneous manufacturing (both down 1.4%). Meanwhile, nondurable goods manufacturing stayed the same in August but fell 1.5% from August 2025 as a 2.1% gain in apparel and leather manufacturing was offset by losses in printing and support (down 1.0%) and plastics and rubber products (down 0.9%).