Philly Fed Index Indicates Slightly Slower Growth In August

Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia-area saw a slightly slower rate of growth in the month of August, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia revealed in a report on Thursday.

The report said the Philly Fed Index edged down to 18.9 in August from 19.5 in July, although a positive reading still indicates growth in regional manufacturing activity. The index has been expected to dip to 18.5.

The modest decrease by the headline index was partly due to a slowdown in the pace of job growth, as the number of employees index dipped to 10.1 in August from 10.9 in July.

On the other hand, the new orders index jumped to 20.4 in August from 2.1 in July and the shipments index surged up to 29.4 from 12.2.

The report also said the prices paid index rose to 21.1 in August from 19.1 in July, while the prices received index climbed to 13.5 from 9.0 in the previous month.

Looking ahead, the Philly Fed said the survey's indexes of future activity indicate that firms expect a continuation of growth in the region's manufacturing sector over the next six months.

The diffusion index for future general activity increased to 42.3 in August from 36.9 in July, reaching its highest reading in four months.