NEW YORK - The Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index rose 1.3% in February to a seasonally adjusted level of 83.3, as the steel, machinery, and auto sectors all showed improvement, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported Wednesday.
Nationally, the Federal Reserve Board's industrial production index for manufacturing grew 0.7% in February. Overall manufacturing output in the region gained 11.7% from a year earlier, compared to 7.4% growth in output nationally in that period.
The January report showed a revised 1.8% increase to 82.2, originally reported as a 1.1% gain to 84.1
The regional auto sector's output increased 3.5% in the month, after a 4.2% jump in January, while national output was 2.2% better. Nationally, auto sector output gained 8.9% from a year ago while the Midwest auto sector's output increased 16.0% year-over-year, according to the Fed.
The regional steel sector's output increased 0.8% in the month, following a 2.3% rise in January. Nationally, steel sector output was off 0.3% in the month. On a year-over-year basis, steel output grew 19.8% in the region while climbing 12.5% in the nation.
The regional machinery sector's output grew 0.7% in the month, following a 2.4% increase in January. Nationally, machinery sector output jumped 0.9% in the month. On a year-over-year basis, machinery output grew 16.8% in the region while rising 15.0% in the nation.
The regional resource sector's output slipped 0.2% in February, following a 0.2% fall in January. Nationally, resource output was 0.2% lower in the month. Compared to February 2010, regional resource output was up 3.4%, while national resource output rose 2.4%. "The wood and paper subsectors of the regional resource sector increased from January to February, while the food, chemical, and nonmetallic subsectors decreased,” the Fed said.
