New York area manufacturing survey for August
- Prior was +17.2
- New orders -1.7 vs +13.9 prior
- Prices paid +16.0 vs +14.9 prior
- Employment +2.4 vs +0.4 prior
- Future business conditions 34.3 vs 38.4 prior
- Shipments +6.7 vs +18.5 prior
- Capex +6.0 vs +9.1 prior
- Survey from Aug 3-10
This is a disappointment and the drop in new orders isn't good for the outlook.
Comments from the release:
Business activity edged slightly high-er in N e w Yo r k State, according to firms responding to the August 2020 Empire StateManufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index fell fourteen points to 3.7, signaling a slower pace of growth than in July. New orders were little changed, and shipments increased mod-estly. Unfilled orders were down, and inven-tories declined. Employment inched higher, while the average workweek declined. Input prices increased at about the same pace as last month, while selling prices increased for the first time in several months. Firms remained optimistic that conditions would improve over the next six months, though optimism fell for a second consecutive month.
I spoke with a manufacturer on the weekend who had just done some layoffs and he indicated that there was a surge of orders after the pandemic but it was all stockpiling and now customers had decided to wait-and-see.
