- Prior quarter 79.8% (revised to 79.7%)
The industrial capacity utilization rate is the ratio of an industry’s actual output to its estimated potential output. This is not a market moving release but it shows further improvement, which is what you generally see when the central bank eases monetary policy.
Further details:
The capacity utilization rate in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector increased by 0.7 percentage points in the first quarter to 76.7%. This rise coincided with an increase in activity in the oil sands and in the support activities for mining and oil and gas extraction.
The capacity utilization rate in the electric power generation, transmission and distribution sector also increased, going from 83.2% in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 86.1% in the first quarter. This increase coincided with a rise in demand for electricity for heating purposes, stemming from below-normal temperatures being recorded in certain parts of the country over the course of the first quarter.
The seasonally adjusted capacity utilization rate in the manufacturing sector slightly decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 77.9% in the first quarter. This decline can mainly be attributed to petroleum and coal product manufacturing (-6.9 percentage points) and fabricated metal product manufacturing (-3.1 percentage points).
This article was written by Giuseppe Dellamotta at www.forexlive.com.