Economy

Empire State Manufacturing Index Dips in July, But Still Positive
July 17, 2023
Manufacturing activity in New York state has stayed relatively level in July compared with the previous month, according to the most recent Empire State Manufacturing Survey.
The headline manufacturing general business conditions fell six points to 1.1 in July month-on-month, according to survey results collected between July 3 and July 11 by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Out of respondents polled, 29% said conditions had improved over the month, while 27% reported that condtions had worsened, the survey said. The new orders index ticked up to 3.3 in July vs. 3.1 a month earlier, and the shipments index dropped to 13.4 from 22 in the same comparison. The New York Fed said this indicated orders edged higher, and the shipment index suggested an increase in shipments, “though at a slower pace than last month.”
“Price increases continued to moderate,” according to the survey, as the prices paid index fell 5.3 points to 16.7 in July vs. June, and has now fallen almost 50 points over the past year. The prices received index dropped 5.1 points to 3.9 in the same comparison.
The inventories index stayed negative at -10.8 (off 4.8 points from June), indicating that inventories moved lower, the New York Fed said.
The future business conditions index dropped 4.6 points to 14.3, “indicating that while conditions are expected to improve, optimism remained subdued,” the survey said.
An interactive history of the Empire State Manufacturing Index is available on our website.
By Ethan Bernard, ethan@steelmarketupdate.com
Latest in Economy

Steel, manufacturing, and union groups divided on S232 tariffs
Domestic steel trade associations, manufacturing groups, and the United Steelworkers (USW) union had mixed reactions to the implementation of new Section 232 tariffs without exclusions on Wednesday. Trade groups representing steel mills broadly supported President Trump’s actions, while the USW and some groups representing manufacturers were more critical. AISI Kevin Dempsey, president and CEO of […]

CRU: Will US tariff policy be transactional or transformational?
The Trump 1.0 tariffs appeared to have little positive effect on the US manufacturing, partly because they hurt export competitiveness.

Beige Book finds mixed demand trends, tariff concerns
Manufacturing activity exhibited slight to modest increases across a majority of districts. However, manufacturers expressed concerns over the potential impact of looming trade policy changes between late January and February.

Construction spending drops marginally in January
Construction spending edged down slightly in January, slipping for the first time in four months. The US Census Bureau estimated spending at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,196 billion in January, down 0.2% from December’s downward revised rate. The January figure is 3.3% higher than a year ago. January’s result, despite the slight erosion, […]

ISM: Manufacturing expansion slowed in February
The Manufacturing PMI registered 50.3% in February. That’s 0.6 percentage points lower compared to the 50.9% recorded in January.