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Industrial output slumps 0.2% in July
Industrial production fell 0.2% in July, the second drop in the past four months, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday. The decline in July was unexpected. Wall Street economists had forecast a 0.2% gain, according to a MarketWatch survey. June output was revised to a 0.2% gain from the initial reading of flat activity. But output in April and May was revised down slightly. Industrial output is only up 0.5% on a year-on-year basis. What happened: The gloom of the headline might be overstated as oil production in the Gulf of Mexico suffered a “sharp but temporary” decline due to Hurricane Barry. This pushed ... (full story)