Sharp cutbacks by automakers pulled industrial production down in May for the third straight month-the longest decline since the last recession, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.
The poor numbers highlighted a weakening industrial pace. Analysts warned the slowdown will continue, because consumer spending remains too soft to quickly reduce stocks of unsold goods.
The Fed said output by the nation’s factories, mines and utilities fell 0.2 percent last month after contracting 0.5 percent in April and 0.2 percent in March.
The central bank also said that businesses operated at their slowest rate in more than a year, using only 83.7 percent of capacity, down from 84.2 percent in April.
The last time industrial output entered a longer period of weakness was in October 1990, as six months of decline set in through March 1991, the month in which the last recession formally ended and the current expansion began.
The government also said the number of Americans filing initial jobless claims last week fell for the third consecutive week, dropping by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 371,000. But even with the decline, the four-week average for claims, a less volatile gauge of the labor market, rose to 376,500 from 375,500 the previous week. That’s the highest since Oct. 17, 1992, when the average stood at 379,250.
