Fifth District Survey of Manufacturing Activity: Capacity utilization: Future (increase vs decrease; diffusion index; percentage points; seasonally adjusted) - United States - Richmond FED - Monthly
This series is part of the dataset: Fifth District Survey of Manufacturing Activity (Richmond FED)
Download Full Dataset (.xlsx)Latest updates. According to recent survey data about manufacturing firms in the Fifth District, the seasonally adjusted diffusion index for capacity utilization (share of CEOs seeing a future increase minus share reporting a decrease) was -10.0 in September 2025, compared to 3.0 in August 2025.
Sample. This monthly series has 259 data points overall. The time period covered by the series extends from January 1997 to September 2025.
History. Here are some summary statistics calculated on the entire sample: the diffusion index had a mean of 22.7; it reached its maximum of 52.0 in June 2020; it reached a trough of -11.0 in April 2020.
Latest values
| Date | Value - Percentage points |
|---|---|
| 2025-07-31 | 9.0 |
| 2025-08-31 | 3.0 |
| 2025-09-30 | -10.0 |
Nugget of wisdom. One of the pros of using FetchSeries is that we give you accurate metadata. Find it below to delve deeper into the characteristics of the indicators that you use in your research.
Not for investment purposes. Content released on this web site is not suitable for investment purposes or any other financial decision. Users should obtain professional advice and perform independent analysis before making any financial commitments.
Series Metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Description | Diffusion index for the question: Will capacity utilization increase or decrease over the next six months? |
| Country | United States |
| Economic concept | Business survey response |
| Data type | Leading indicator of the business cycle |
| Deflation method | Not applicable |
| Seasonally adjusted | Yes |
| Rescaling | None |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Unit | Percentage points |
| Source | Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond |
| Source type | Central bank |
| Data licence | Not copyrightable under U.S. law |
| Measure type | Diffusion index (share of respondents reporting an increase minus share reporting a decrease) |
Series in the same data set
Discover the other time series included in this data set.