US industrial production increases in September

US industrial production posted an increase in September following gain in August as well, official data showed Monday, reflecting improvement in economic activities. The Federal Reserve showed in a report that industrial production increased 0.6 percent in September following a gain of 0.4 percent in August. It added that for the third quarter as a whole, industrial production rose at an annual rate of 2.3 percent. Meanwhile, manufacturing output edged up 0.1 percent in September following a gain of 0.5 percent in August, and increased at an annual rate of 1.2 percent for the third quarter. According to the report, the output of utilities rose 4.4 percent in September following declines in each of the previous five months. The level of the index for total industrial production in September was equal to its 2007 average and was 3.2 percent above its year-earlier level. Capacity utilization for total industry moved up 0.4 percentage point to 78. 3 percent.