New York, NY, Apr. 15--Manufacturing activity in the New York Federal Reserve district rebounded sharply to 36.05 in April from the 25.33 reading in March, marking the 12th-straight month of positive readings.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected a reading of 26.8.
The Bank said Thursday in its Empire State Manufacturing Survey that its general business conditions index "continued to improve significantly" to a 36.05 reading in April from 25.33 in March. "The new orders and shipments indexes rose to levels suggesting substantial ongoing improvement," the report noted.
New orders increased to 31.63 from 23.52 in March, while the shipments snapped back to 41.59 from 26.25. The unfilled-orders index increased to 6.44 from 3.32 in March, while inventories slipped into negative territory, with a reading of -0.95 compared to 3.92 in March. The prices-paid index increased to 56.19 from 50.00 in March, while the prices received index increased to 12.38 from 11.76.
The employment indexes increased sharply. The number of employees rose to 19.83 from 9.72, while the average employee workweek increased to 22.24 from 11.86 in March.
