June 17, 2025
Industrial production for May declined 0.2% after having risen 0.1% in April. In the past year industrial production has risen 0.6%.
Breaking industrial production down into its three basic categories — manufacturing, mining, and utilities — manufacturing production rose 0.1% in May after having declined 0.5% in April. In the past year manufacturing output has risen 0.5%.
Motor vehicle sector production jumped 4.9% in May after having declined 2.3% in April. In the past year it has risen 0.9%. This category is very volatile on a month-to-month basis. Some of the increase the past couple of months represents a step up in production in an effort to avoid tariffs.
Excluding the motor vehicle sector, manufacturing output declined 0.3% in May after having fallen 0.4% in April.. In the past year it has risen 0.5%.
High tech production rose 0.4% in May after climbing 2.8% in April. High tech production has risen 9.8% in the past year. We would suggest that if firms are unable to find an adequate supply of workers, they will turn to technology in an effort to boost production and satisfy the demand for their products. At the same time firms are all experimenting with AI in an effort to figure out how it might help them boost productivity. Thus, we expect high tech production to continue to climb rapidly in the months ahead.
Mining (14%) output rose 0.1% in May after declining 0.3% in April. Mining has risen 2.9% in the past year.
Utilities output declined 2.9% in May after having gained 4.9% in April. Over the past year utility output has fallen 1.6%. This component is extremely volatile from month-to-month as the weather fluctuates.
Capacity utilization in the manufacturing sector was unchanged in May at 76.7% after having declined 0.4% in April . The utilization rate is slightly below the 77.4% level that is generally regarded as effective full capacity utilization.
Stephen Slifer
NumberNomics
Charleston, SC
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