New York Manufacturing Picks up After Three Months of Sluggishness

Source: New York Fed

Business activity in New York surged in April to return to positive levels, following three straight months of sluggishness. NYF is down 0.26%, while QQQ is down 0.15% premarket.

• The general business conditions index stood at 24.6 points, up by 36.4 points from the -11.8 points in March.
• Some 40% of survey respondents said conditions have improved during the period, while 15% said conditions worsened.
• The biggest increase was recorded in shipments, which climbed by 41.9 points to 34.5 in April versus -7.4 in March.
• This was followed by new orders, which jumped by 36.3 points to 25.1 from the -11.2 recorded in the previous month.
• Increases were also seen in prices paid, the average employee workweek, and unfilled orders.
• Declines were recorded in delivery time, inventories, prices received, and the number of employees.
• Optimism for the coming six months fell 21 points to 15.2, marking the lowest since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.