Industrial Production: Another Irrelevant Statistic?

The economic reports delayed by the government shutdown continue to be released at a steady pace, but investors would probably be better served by not putting too much emphasis on any given set of numbers. Industrial production increased 0.6% in September. For the third quarter, industrial production advanced at a middling 2.3% annualized rate. Manufacturing increased at a 1.2% annualized rate in the third quarter. Capacity utilization--a measure related to the amount of slack in the industrials...