May Empire State Index General Business Conditions Index -3.2, vs expected 0.0
The May Empire State Manufacturing Survey came in at -3.2 versus and expected 0.0 reading and against a positive 0.6 last time.
The new orders index remained came in at -0.5 and the shipments index at 4.6 was down sharply.
The prices paid index exceeded its earlier record high by a wide margin, reaching 69.6, while the prices received index dipped several points.
Employment indexes hovered near zero. Future indexes were generally low and down from last month’s levels, suggesting that the outlook for the next six months remains subdued, particularly for employment.
Supplementary questions in the May survey focused on past and expected changes in the prices that firms pay for inputs and the prices that they charge their customers. Respondents estimated that the prices they paid had risen 8.7 percent, on average, over the past twelve months, and they expected such prices to rise by an average of 6.8 percent over the next twelve months. In contrast, firms’ selling prices were reported to have risen by an average of just 2.9 percent over the past twelve months, but were expected to accelerate for a 4.1 percent increase over the next twelve months.