(RTTNews) - Industrial production fell by much more than expected in the month of April, according to a report released by the Federal Reserve on Thursday, with a notable decrease in factory output contributing to the bigger than expected decline.

The report showed that industrial production fell 0.7 percent in April following a revised 0.2 percent increase in March. Economists had been expecting a more modest 0.3 percent decline compared to the 0.3 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.

A notable decrease in manufacturing output contributed to the bigger than expected decline, with production in the manufacturing industry falling by 0.8 percent in April after coming in unchanged in the previous month.

The Federal Reserve said that factory output in April was held down by a large drop in the index for motor vehicles and parts, with strikes and strike-related parts shortages resulting in suspended production at many facilities.

The report also showed a 0.8 percent decrease in mining output in April, which followed a 1.0 percent increase in March. At the same time, utilities output edged up 0.3 percent after rising 0.7 percent in the previous month.

Additionally, the Federal Reserve said that capacity utilization fell to 79.7 percent in April from a revised 80.4 percent in March. The decrease exceeded the expectations of economists, who had expected capacity utilization to edge down to 80.2 percent.

The bigger than expected decrease in capacity utilization came as capacity utilization in the manufacturing sector fell to 77.5 percent from 78.3 percent and capacity utilization in the mining sector edged down to 90.6 percent from 91.4 percent.

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