Factory activity declined in New York state earlier this month and employment in the sector failed to grow for the first time since June, signs that U.S. manufacturing may have lost a step.
A separate report on Friday showed prices for U.S. exports unexpectedly fell in October, the latest indication of global economic weakness.
The New York Fed’s “Empire State” index of business conditions at factories fell to minus 2.21 from 1.52 in October, the first negative reading since May. Economists in a Reuters poll had forecast an index of 5.00. A reading above zero indicates expansion.
The report underscores the headwinds facing the world’s largest economy, where the recovery remains fragile.
The survey of manufacturing plants in the state is one of the earliest monthly guideposts to U.S. factory conditions. If the weakness in New York also appears in other major manufacturing regions, it would mark a setback after data in October showed relatively robust hiring across the economy and strong expansion at factories.
via Reuters
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Alfonso Esparza
trader focused on North America and emerging markets. He has been published by The MarketWatch, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and The Globe and Mail, and he also appears regularly as a guest commentator on networks including Bloomberg and BNN. He holds a finance degree from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) and an MBA with a specialization on financial engineering and marketing from the University of Toronto.
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