U.S. Industry Operates at 80%

U.S. industry operated at just 80% of capacity in February, the second month in a row that the operating rate has fallen, the government reported today.

The Federal Reserve Board said that the operating rate at the nation’s factories, mines and utilities plunged 0.6 of a percentage point from January, which in turn had posted a slight 0.1 percentage point drop from the December level. The government had originally reported that the operating rate had increased by 0.1 percentage point in January.