Halloween begins frenetic candy consumption that continues into the Christmas holidays and New Year’s Day, when people often make (usually short-lived) resolutions to lose weight. But all this consumption first needs production. The graph shows the relevant data from the industrial production index and its stunning seasonality. October, November, and December are the months with the highest production of candy. Thus, it appears producers don’t build up candy stocks much in advance of these festive opportunities to indulge in sugary consumption. For chocolate, this makes complete sense: You don’t want to wait long after it’s been tempered to consume it. Fresh chocolate is best.

How this graph was created: Search for “candy,” and this series should be among the first choices. Click on the monthly, not seasonally adjusted series.

Suggested by Christian Zimmermann.