The U.S. economy for the next four quarters looks weaker now than it did three months ago, according to 39 forecasters surveyed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The panel predicts real GDP will grow at an annual rate of 1.7 percent this quarter, down from 2.0 percent in the last survey, 1.9 percent next quarter, and 1.7 percent in ...

Business activity was little changed in New York State, according to firms responding to the November 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index came in at 2.9, roughly in line with its level in October. New orders increased slightly, and shipments grew modestly. Delivery times were somewhat shorter ...

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in September indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate. Job gains have been solid, on average, in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Although household spending has been rising at a ...

Texas factory activity continued to expand in October, albeit at a markedly slower pace, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, fell nine points to 4.5, suggesting a moderation in output growth ...

Led by declines in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) fell to –0.45 in September from +0.15 in August. Three of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index decreased from August, and all four categories made negative contributions to the index in September. The index’s ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity eased slightly in October, and expectations for future activity inched lower but remained slightly positive (Chart 1). The month-over-month price index for raw materials declined at a slower rate, while the price index for finished products expanded slightly. District firms expected prices to increase over ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity strengthened in October, according to the most recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite index rose from −9 in September to 8 in October, as all three components — shipments, new orders, and employment — increased. Manufacturing firms also reported an increase in backlog of ...

Responses to the October Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest continued expansion of nonmanufacturing activity in the region. Although the index for general activity at the firm level fell, the indexes for sales/revenues and new orders both rose. The index for full-time employment decreased. The firms continued to report ...

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to grow, according to results from the October Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey's broad indicators remained positive, although their movements were mixed this month: The general activity and shipments indicators decreased from their readings last month, but the indicators for ...

The U.S. economy expanded at a slight to modest pace since the prior report as business activity varied across the country. Reports from Districts representing states in the southern and western U.S. generally were more upbeat than Districts representing the Midwest and Great Plains. Household spending was solid on balance: nonauto retail ...

Business activity grew slightly in New York State, according to firms responding to the October 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index edged up two points to 4.0. There was only a small increase in new orders, but shipments picked up. Delivery times decreased slightly, while inventories were ...

Texas factory activity continued to expand in September, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, fell four points to 13.9, suggesting output growth continued but at a slightly slower pace than ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity edged down in September, and expectations for future activity moderated but remained positive. The month-over-month price index for raw materials continued to fall, while the price index for finished products inched higher. Firms continued to expect prices to rise over the next 6 months, but at a ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity softened in September, according to the most recent survey from the Richmond Fed. The composite index dropped from 1 in August to −9 in September, as both shipments and new orders fell. However, the third component, employment, rose. Firms also reported a drop in backlog of orders and weakening local ...

Responses to the September Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest an expansion of nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The index for general activity at the firm level and the index for sales/revenues both moderated slightly, while the new orders index held steady. The index for full-time employment remained stable. The ...

Led by improvements in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) rose to +0.10 in August from –0.41 in July. All four broad categories of indicators that make up the index increased from July, but three of the four categories made negative contributions to the index in August. The index’s three-month ...

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to expand this month, according to results from the September Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey's broad indicators remained positive, although their movements were mixed: The indexes for general activity and new orders fell, while the indexes for shipments and employment increased. ...

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in July indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate. Job gains have been solid, on average, in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Although household spending has been rising at a strong ...

Business activity was little changed in New York State, according to firms responding to the September 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index edged down three points to 2.0. New orders were marginally higher than last month, and shipments grew modestly. Delivery times were steady, and ...

On balance, reports from Federal Reserve Districts suggested that the economy expanded at a modest pace through the end of August. Although concerns regarding tariffs and trade policy uncertainty continued, the majority of businesses remained optimistic about the near-term outlook. Reports on consumer spending were mixed, although auto sales ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity was moderate in August, according to the most recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite index rose from −12 in July to 1 in August, buoyed by increases in the indexes for shipments and new orders. However, the third component, employment, fell. Firms reported increasing ...

Texas factory activity expanded at a faster clip in August, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, shot up nine points to 17.9, its highest reading in nearly ...

Led by declines in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) fell to –0.36 in July from +0.03 in June. All four broad categories of indicators that make up the index decreased from June, and all four categories made negative contributions to the index in July. The index’s three-month moving average, ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity declined in August, while expectations for future activity edged higher (Chart 1). The month-over-month price indexes for raw materials and finished products decreased, turning negative for the first time since 2016. Firms continued to expect prices to rise over the next 6 ...

Responses to the August Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest continued expansion in nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The indexes for general activity at the firm level and sales/revenues both increased, while the new orders index fell. The index for full-time employment ticked upward. Survey responses indicated ...

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to grow, according to results from the August Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey's broad indicators remained positive, although their movements were mixed this month: The general activity, shipments, and employment indicators decreased from their readings last month, but the ...

Business activity increased modestly in New York State, according to firms responding to the August 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index was little changed at 4.8. New orders increased after declining for the prior two months, and shipments continued to expand. Unfilled orders fell, delivery ...

The U.S. economy for the next three quarters looks slightly weaker now than it did three months ago, according to 35 forecasters surveyed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The panel predicts real GDP will grow at an annual rate of 1.8 percent this quarter, 2.0 percent next quarter, and 1.9 percent in the first quarter of 2020, ...

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in June indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate. Job gains have been solid, on average, in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Although growth of household spending has picked up from ...

Texas factory activity continued to expand in July, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, moved from 8.9 to 9.3, indicating output growth continued at roughly the same pace as ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity was largely unchanged in July, while expectations for future activity remained moderately positive. The price index for raw materials increased from both last month and a year ago. Prices received for finished products were ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity weakened in July, according to the most recent survey from the Richmond Fed. The composite index fell from 2 in June to −12 in July, its lowest reading since January 2013, as all three components — shipments, new orders, and employment — registered declines. Backlogs of orders also fell, reaching a value ...

Responses to the July Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest an expansion of nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The index for general activity at the firm level and the index for sales/revenues both gained after two consecutive months of decline, while the new orders index increased for the second consecutive month. ...

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) ticked up to –0.02 in June from –0.03 in May. One of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index increased from May, and two of the four categories made negative contributions to the index in June. The index’s three-month moving average, CFNAI-MA3, ticked up to –0.26 in June ...

Manufacturing conditions in the region showed improvement this month, according to firms responding to the July Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey’s indexes for general activity, new orders, shipments, and employment remained positive and increased from their June readings. Most of the survey’s future activity indexes ...

Overall Economic Activity
Economic activity continued to expand at a modest pace overall from mid-May through early July, with little change from the prior reporting period. In most Districts, sales of retail goods increased slightly overall, although vehicle sales were flat. Activity in the nonfinancial services sector rose further. ...

Business activity rebounded modestly in New York State, according to firms responding to the July 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index climbed out of negative territory, rising thirteen points to 4.3. New orders were little changed, and shipments increased. Unfilled orders and inventories ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity was flat in June, while expectations for future activity remained solid. Price indexes were lower than a month ago, indicating that prices continue to rise but at a slower pace. The raw materials price index was lower than a year ago, and expectations for future price indexes also ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity changed little in June, according to the most recent survey from the Richmond Fed. The composite index dropped slightly from 5 in May to 3 in June, resulting from a drop in the employment index, while the other two components, shipments and new orders rose slightly. Most firms reported some improvement ...

Responses to the June Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest a moderation of nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The index for general activity at the firm level fell for the second consecutive month and the index for sales/revenues fell for the third consecutive month, while the full-time employment and new orders indexes edged ...

Texas factory activity continued to expand in June, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, rose from 6.3 to 8.9, indicating output growth accelerated slightly ...

Led by improvements in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) rose to –0.05 in May from –0.48 in April. Three of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index increased from April, but only one of the four categories made a positive contribution to the index in May. The index’s ...

Manufacturing conditions in the region weakened this month, according to firms responding to the June Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The current activity index declined to a reading just above zero this month. The survey’s indexes for new orders, shipments, and employment remained positive but also declined from their May readings. Most ...

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in May indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity is rising at a moderate rate. Job gains have been solid, on average, in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Although growth of household spending appears to have picked up ...

Business activity took a sharp turn downward in New York State, according to firms responding to the June 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index plummeted twenty-six points, its largest monthly decline on record, to -8.6. New orders receded, while shipments increased modestly. Unfilled orders ...

Overall Economic Activity
Economic activity expanded at a modest pace overall from April through mid-May, a slight improvement over the previous period. Almost all Districts reported some growth, and a few saw moderate gains in activity. Manufacturing reports were generally positive, but some Districts noted signs of slowing activity and a ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity was moderate in May, according to the most recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite index inched up from 3 in April to 5 in May, as shipments and new orders had fairly flat reading and the third component, employment, remained positive. Firms reported growth in spending ...

Texas factory activity continued to expand in May, albeit at a slower pace, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, fell six points to 6.3, indicating output growth decelerated ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity continued to grow at a modest pace in May, and expectations for future activity remained mostly solid (Chart 1). Price indexes showed little change, with most indexes lower than a year ago and some slight upward movement in future raw ...

Responses to the May Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey lightly moderated but continued to suggest expansion in nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The indexes for general activity at the firm level, new orders, and sales/revenues all remained positive but fell from last month’s readings. The index for full-time employment edged ...