A factory worker at a New York manufacturing plant. (Photo: Reuters)
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey rebounded strongly to 19.8 in June, crushing the median economic forecast of 5.0 by a factor of four. That’s an increase of 21 points from the previous month, which most analysts believed to be a minor setback in an otherwise strong report on regional data.
New orders jumped back out of contraction with a 23-point gain to 18.1, as did unfilled orders at 4.6. That indicates hiring will pick up in the region as manufacturing companies search for new employees to fill the order. The shipments index increased to 22.3.
The Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey released earlier Thursday morning also showed stronger-than-anticipated regional manufacturing activity.
Worth noting, national indexes, including the ISM Manufacturing Index Report on Business, has yet to reflect the gains shown in regional surveys.
