New York Manufacturing Index Unexpectedly Jumps To One-Year High In November

(RTTNews) - The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a report on Monday showing its reading on regional manufacturing activity unexpectedly increased in the month of November.

The New York Fed said its general business conditions index jumped to 18.7 in November after surging to 10.7 in October, with a positive reading indicating growth. Economists had expected the index to pull back to 5.8.

With the unexpected advance, the general business conditions index reached its highest level since hitting 20.2 last November.

The unexpected increase by the headline index partly reflected a significant acceleration in the pace of new orders growth, as the new orders index shot up to 15.9 in November from 3.7 in October.

The shipments index also rose to 16.8 in November from 14.4 in October, while the number of employees index crept up to 6.6 in November from 6.2 in October.

Meanwhile, the report said the prices paid index fell to 49.0 in November from 52.4 in October and the prices received index decreased to 24.0 in November from 27.2 in October.

The future general business conditions index also tumbled to 19.1 in November from 30.3 in October, although the New York Fed noted firms still expect conditions to improve in the months ahead.

On Thursday, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its report on regional manufacturing activity in the month of November.