WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. manufacturing output rose in December likely as production at Boeing picked up after the end of a crippling strike by workers at the aerospace giant’s factory.

Factory output rose 0.6 percent last month after an upwardly revised 0.4 percent gain in November, the Federal Reserve said Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast output would rise 0.2 percent after a 0.2 percent rise reported earlier.

Factory output was unchanged year-on-year in December. It fell at an annualized rate of 1.2% in the fourth quarter after contracting at a rate of 0.8% in the July-September quarter. Manufacturing, which accounts for 10.3% of the economy, has largely stabilized in recent months after the US central bank began cutting interest rates.

The Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index rose to a nine-month high in December. But sweeping tariffs on imported goods planned by the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump could raise commodity costs and undermine any recovery.

The production of aerospace and miscellaneous transport equipment rose by 6.3%. The strike by workers at Boeing factories, which ended in November, had depressed global manufacturing output in September and October.

Production of motor vehicles and parts fell 0.6% last month. Durable manufacturing output rose 0.4%, also boosted by a 1.7% increase in primary metals production. Nondurable manufacturing output rose 0.7% amid big gains.

Mining output advanced 1.8% after falling 0.5% in November.

Utilities output rose 2.1%, boosted by a 6.2% increase in natural gas production amid freezing temperatures. After a fall of 0.7% in November.

Industrial production accelerated 0.9% last month, with aircraft and parts production adding 0.2 percentage points, after rising 0.2% in November. It rose 0.5% year-on-year in December and contracted to a 0.8% pace in the fourth quarter after easing to a 0.6% pace in the July-September quarter.

Capacity utilization for the industrial sector, a measure of how well companies are fully using their resources, rose to 77.6% from 77.0% in November. It is 2.1 percentage points below the 1972-2023 average. The operating rate of the manufacturing sector rose 0.4 percentage points in December to 76.6. It is 1.7 percentage points below its long-term average.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani)