Industrial Production Grows 0.8%

Industrial production increased 0.8% in March, led by a rebound in consumer goods manufacturing, the Federal Reserve said Friday.

The rise followed a revised 0.1% gain in February had originally been reported as a decline.

Economists had forecast March production to rise 0.6%, Bloomberg reported.

Manufacturing, which makes up three-quarters of the total, rose 0.7%.

The share of industrial capacity in use rose to 77.4%, the highest since August 2008, from 76.9% in February.

Manufacturing accounts for about an eighth of the U.S. economy and the factory sector is one of trucking’s largest and most important customers.