US industrial production to increase 0.4% in November – BMO CM

According to Michael Gregory, Deputy Chief Economist at BMO Capital Markets, November saw the largest number of manufacturers reporting net production gains in more than 6½ years (according to the ISM), which, with the industry’s 0.4% increase in aggregate hours worked in the sector, suggests we’ll see a solid gain in US factory output in the month.

Key Quotes

“Meanwhile, oil production ended November at its highest level since weekly data commenced in 1983, greasing a strong gain in mining output. Utilities production probably found some lift as energy demand for home heating/cooling shifted closer to typical for that time of the year. Overall, we look for industrial production to increase 0.4%, which will lift the capacity utilization rate three-tenths to 77.3%.”