Growth In New York Manufacturing Rebounds More Than Expected In February

A report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Friday showed a notable rebound in the pace of growth in regional manufacturing activity in the month of February.

The New York Fed said its general business conditions index climbed to 8.8 in February from 3.9 in January, with a positive reading indicating growth in regional manufacturing activity. Economists had expected the index to rise to 7.0.

The bigger than expected increase by the index came after it tumbled to its lowest level in well over a year in the previous month.

The rebound by the headline index was partly due to faster new orders growth, as the new orders index rose to 7.5 in February from 3.5 in January.

On the other hand, the report said the shipments index slumped to 10.4 in February from 17.9 in the previous month.

The number of employees index also fell to 4.1 in February from 7.4 in January, indicating a slowdown in the pace of job growth.

The prices paid index also tumbled to 27.1 in February from 35.9 in January, although the prices received index jumped to 22.9 from 13.1.

Looking ahead, the New York Fed said firms were more optimistic about the six-month outlook, with the index for future business conditions surging up to 32.3 in February from 17.8 in January.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve is scheduled to release a separate report on regional manufacturing activity next Thursday.