Summary Box: Automakers rebound, construction dips

FACTORY OUTPUT UP: U.S. automakers rebounded in July to boost factory production by the most since the Japan crisis. That, along with higher utility output during the unseasonably hot month, helped lift overall industrial production 0.9 percent.

BUILDING DOWN: Builders broke ground on fewer single-family homes last month. That offset an increase in apartment construction and left the seasonally adjusted pace at just 604,000 homes. Economists say that's half of the 1.2 million per year that represent a healthy housing market.

ECONOMY MIXED: The mixed data suggest that the economy remains fragile but is not on the cusp of another recession.