Investing.com - Industrial production in the U.S. rose more-than-expected in February, easing concerns over the economic outlook, official data showed on Monday.
In a report, the U.S. Federal Reserve said that industrial production rose by a seasonally adjusted 0.6% last month, easily surpassing forecasts for a 0.1% gain. Industrial production for January was revised to a 0.2% decline from a previously reported drop of 0.3%.
The report showed that the capacity utilization rate, a measure of how fully firms are using their resources, inched up to 78.8% in February, compared to expectations for a reading of 78.6% and up from 78.5% in January.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar trimmed gains against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.05% to trade at 1.3907, compared to 1.3904 ahead of the data.
Meanwhile, the outlook for U.S. equity markets remained higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a gain of 0.5% at the open, S&P 500 futures pointed to a rise of 0.5% and Nasdaq 100 futures indicated an increase of 0.6%.