New York's manufacturing sector experienced a notable resurgence in November, reaching its highest level in almost three years as both orders and shipments transitioned into positive ranges, as reported by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Friday. The Empire State Manufacturing Survey revealed that the general business conditions index surged to 31.2, a significant rise from minus 11.9 in October, marking the highest reading since December 2021.
Industry forecasts, based on Bloomberg data, had predicted a steady outcome for this month’s survey. Richard Deitz, Economic Research Adviser at the New York Fed, stated, "Manufacturing activity grew strongly in New York State in November, with firms reporting sharp increases in new orders and shipments." He further noted, "Price increases remained steady and modest while firms expressed optimism about future conditions." The report highlighted a 38.2 point increase in new orders, bringing the index to 28.
Meanwhile, shipments saw an uptick to 32.5 from October’s minus 2.7. However, the component assessing the number of employees declined by 3.2 points to 0.9, indicating stable conditions within the labor market. The index tracking the costs of raw materials decreased to 27.8 in November from 29 in the previous month.
Conversely, the measure for selling prices climbed to 12.4 from 10.8, signaling ongoing inflationary pressures. Looking ahead, the index for general business conditions saw a slight deterioration of 5.5 points, settling at a still-robust 33.2 this month. The future new orders index fell by 7 points to 31.4, and the shipments gauge decreased by 9.7 points to 27.9. Optimism regarding employment growth, however, improved, rising to 23.9 from 19.5, suggesting that manufacturers still anticipate job expansion despite current fluctuations..