New Production Figures Ease Inflation Fears

Industrial plant use declined in April to its lowest level in more than two years, suggesting there is little danger of bottlenecks that might spark inflation, Federal Reserve figures showed. The decline in capacity use to 81.9% from 82.2% in March came as industrial production rose a higher-than-expected 0.1%, after a revised 0.3% gain in March. Output of big-ticket durable goods jumped 0.4%, led by a 3.1% increase in the production of cars and trucks.