NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The nation's economic decline led to the biggest drop in electric output since 1938, according to an industry trade group.
A new report released Tuesday from the Edison Electric Institute says output fell by 3.7% for its second year of declines in a row.
The group said the fall was triggered by the recession and cooler summer temperatures, which were more than 20% lower than normal in many parts of the country.
The report showed that the industry provided just 3.9 million gigawatthours of electricity to the continental United States, the lowest amount since 2004. The highest weekly output during the year was just 88,713 GWh, which is 10% less than the all-time record high of 98,583 GWh set in August 2006.
While electric output levels fell across the nation, they decreased the most in the Central Industrial and West Central regions, by 6.0% and 5.4% respectively. The South Central Region showed the smallest drop, by 1.1%. 
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 32,627.97 | -234.33 | -0.71% |
| Nasdaq | 13,215.24 | 99.07 | 0.76% |
| S&P 500 | 3,913.10 | -2.36 | -0.06% |
| Treasuries | 1.73 | 0.00 | 0.12% |
| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Motor Co | 8.29 | 0.05 | 0.61% |
| Advanced Micro Devic... | 54.59 | 0.70 | 1.30% |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 47.49 | -2.44 | -4.89% |
| General Electric Co | 13.00 | -0.16 | -1.22% |
| Kraft Heinz Co | 27.84 | -2.20 | -7.32% |
|
Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More |
Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More |
Honda and General Motors are creating a new generation of fully autonomous vehicles. More |
In 1998, Ntsiki Biyela won a scholarship to study wine making. Now she's about to launch her own brand. More |
Whether you hedge inflation or look for a return that outpaces inflation, here's how to prepare. More |
