Benchmark index turns psitive New York manufacturers say they’re seeing increases in new orders and shipments and growth in inventories. Those business improvements helped propel the general-business conditions index of the Empire State Manufacturing Survey back into positive territory for […]
Benchmark index turns psitive
New York manufacturers say they’re seeing increases in new orders and shipments and growth in inventories.
Those business improvements helped propel the general-business conditions index of the Empire State Manufacturing Survey back into positive territory for the first time since February, rising 22 points in July to 5.5.
Based on firms responding to the survey, the July reading indicates business activity “picked up slightly” in New York state, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in its July 15 report.
A positive reading indicates expansion or growth in manufacturing activity, while a negative index value points to a decline in the sector.
The July survey found new orders edged higher and shipments increased. In addition, inventories “grew significantly,” and employment expanded for a second consecutive month. Capital-spending plans grew, and firms remained “fairly optimistic” about the outlook, the New York Fed said.
Survey details
The new orders index rose 16 points to 2.0, suggesting that orders edged up, and the shipments index climbed 19 points to 11.5, its highest reading in several months.
Unfilled orders declined. The inventories index rose 15 points to 15.6, a sign that business inventories grew. Delivery times were somewhat longer, and the supply-availability index remained below zero at -11.0, suggesting that supply availability “continued to worsen,” the New York Fed said.
The index for number of employees rose 5 points to 9.2, and the average-workweek index increased to 4.2. It marks the first time that both indexes have been positive since 2022, suggesting that both employment and hours worked increased.
The prices-paid index rose 9 points to 56.0, pointing to a pickup in input price increases, while the prices received index held steady at 25.7, suggesting that selling-price increases remained moderate.
The index for future general business conditions edged up to 24.1, suggesting that, on the whole, businesses expect activity to increase in the months ahead, the New York Fed said.
New orders and shipments are expected to increase, and supply availability is expected to be little changed. Capital-spending plans picked up.
The New York Fed distributes the Empire State Manufacturing Survey on the first day of each month to the same pool of about 200 manufacturing executives in New York. On average, about 100 executives return responses.
