Industrial production in the United States fell by 0.5% month-over-month in March 2026, defying market expectations for a 0.1% increase and reversing a 0.7% rise in February. This was the sharpest decline in industrial activity since September 2024.
Manufacturing output, which accounts for roughly 78% of total industrial production, edged down 0.1% in March after a 0.4% gain in February, underperforming forecasts that had called for a 0.1% increase. Mining output declined by 1.2% over the month.
The utilities index contracted by 2.3%, reflecting lower output from both electric and natural gas utilities. Capacity utilization slipped to 75.7%, standing 3.7 percentage points below its long-run average for the 1972–2025 period.
