Manufacturing Output Improves as Broader Industrial Production Rises

Industrial production rose 0.7% in September, while manufacturing output stepped up 0.3% after ticking down 0.2% in August. At 98.4% of its 2017 average, manufacturing production increased 1.1% from September 2025. Capacity utilization for manufacturing was 75.9%, up 0.1 percentage point from August and 1.0% over the past year. Capacity utilization for manufacturing remained 2.3 percentage points below its long-run average from 1972 to 2025.

In September, production for all but one of the major market groups posted gains. Consumer goods production rose 0.7%, while business equipment stayed the same. The 1.5% decline in consumer durables was driven by a 2.8% drop in automotive products output. Meanwhile, the index for consumer nondurables increased 1.2%, led by a 1.4% gain in chemical products. Among business equipment, a 1.3% gain in industrial and other equipment output offset losses in transit equipment (down 1.7%) and information processing equipment (down 0.9%). At the same time, the index for materials stepped up 0.7%, while construction supplies and business supplies increased 1.0% and 0.9%, respectively.

Durable goods manufacturing edged up 0.1% in September and rose 3.7% from the year prior. In September, the largest monthly gain occurred in primary metals (up 1.6%). Meanwhile, nondurable goods manufacturing increased 0.4% in September but fell 1.1% from September 2025 as a gain in printing and support (up 1.9%) helped offset a loss in paper manufacturing (down 1.1%). Year-over-year, the largest gain occurred in computer and electronic products (up 9.5%), while other manufacturing experienced the largest loss (down 13.2%).