New York manufacturing index hits highest level since fall 2017

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey general business-conditions index climbed 9 points in April to 26.3, its highest level since October 2017, well before the COVID pandemic started.

It was the third straight strong month for the index, which took it from a reading of 3.5 in January all the way up to its current multi-year high.

The April index number — based on firms responding to the survey — indicates business activity “grew strongly” in New York, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in its April 15 report. 

The index reading of 26.3 also easily beat economists’ expectations of 20, according to a survey by the Wall Street Journal.

The Empire State survey found 39 percent of respondents reported that conditions had improved over the month, while 12 percent indicated that conditions had worsened, the New York Fed said.

Survey details

The new-orders index rose 18 points to 26.9 and the shipments index climbed to 25.0, pointing to “strong gains” in orders and shipments, the New York Fed said. 

Unfilled orders were “notably higher.” The delivery-times index surged 17 points to 28.1, breaking the previous record by 12 points, pointing to “significantly longer” delivery times. Inventories moved higher.

The index for number of employees increased 5 points to 13.9, and the average-workweek index edged up to 12.7, indicating ongoing gains in employment and hours worked. 

The prices-paid index rose 10 points to 74.7, its highest level since 2008, pointing to “sharp” input-price increases. The prices-received index jumped 11 points to 34.9, a record high, indicating that selling prices increased “at the fastest pace in more than [20] years,” the New York Fed said.

The index for future business conditions rose 3 points to 39.8, suggesting that firms remained optimistic about future conditions. The indexes for future new orders and shipments both came in above 40. The indexes for future prices paid and future prices received continued to “march upward.” 

The index for future employment climbed to a record high, with close to half of firms expecting to increase employment in the months ahead. The capital-expenditures index rose to 31.5, and the technology-spending index came in at 21.9.

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.