STATE OF BUSINESS: Rising Production

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U.S. industrial production rose 3% in January to top the alltime record reached before the steel strike. The advance, which brought the index to 169 of the 1947-49 average of 100, came on top of a 6% rise in December, reflected improvement in every sector of the economy except mining.

Other rising indexes:

¶ Department-store sales rose 4% in the week ended Feb. 13.

¶ Personal income climbed to a new record of $393.3 billion on a seasonally adjusted rate in January, up $1.2 billion from December's previous record.

¶ Rail and truck carloadings continued above last year's pace, but dropped slightly from the week before because of bad weather in the Central, Southern and Western states.

¶ F. W. Dodge Corp. predicted gains in most construction categories during 1960, especially in the field of plant and equipment expenditures. Notable exception: residential construction, which dropped almost 13% in January from the same month in 1959, now seems headed for 1,200,000 to 1,250,000 housing starts in 1960, down about 10% from 1959.