NEW YORK - The Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index inched up 0.1% in September to a seasonally adjusted level of 80.2 after the August report showed a revised 1.3% decrease to 80.1, originally reported as a 1.4% slide to 79.9, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported today.
Nationally, the Federal Reserve Board's industrial production index for manufacturing dipped 0.1% in September. Overall manufacturing output in the region gained 8.4% from a year earlier, compared to 5.9% growth in output nationally in that period.
The regional auto sector's output increased 0.9% in the month, after a 7.8% drop in August, while national output was off 0.2%. Nationally, auto sector output gained 3.6% from a year ago while the Midwest auto sector's output surged 10.0% year-over-year, according to the Fed.
The regional resource sector's output climbed 0.8% in September, following a 2.1% rise in August. Nationally, resource output was 0.4% higher in the month. Compared to September 2009, regional resource output was up 6.3%, while national resource output rose 3.6%. "The food, chemical, and wood production subsectors of the regional resource sector increased from August to September, while the nonmetallic subsector decreased and the paper subsector remained flat,” the Fed said.
The regional machinery sector's output fell 1.2% in the month, following a 0.2% decrease in August. Nationally, machinery sector output slipped 0.6% in the month. On a year-over-year basis, machinery output grew 8.5% in the region while rising 11.5% in the nation.
The regional steel sector's output decreased 1.3% in the month, following a 1.0% gain in August. Nationally, steel sector output was off 0.4% in the month. On a year-over-year basis, steel output grew 17.3% in the region while climbing 10.9% in the nation.
