The numbers: Industrial production fell a sharp 1.3% in September, the Federal Reserve reported Monday.
The gain was below Wall Street expectations of a 0.2% gain, according to a survey by the Wall Street Journal.
Adding to the sense of weakness in the data, industrial output in August was revised to a fall of 0.1% versus the prior estimate of a 0.4% gain.
Big picture: This is the biggest decline since the depth of the pandemic in the spring of 2020. Manufacturing had been a bright spot even though the sector is struggling with supply bottlenecks.
Market reaction: Stocks DJIA, +1.09% SPX, +0.75% were set to open lower Monday after China reported a sizable deceleration in growth in the third quarter.