EmailStory Stocks®
Archive
Last Update: 17-Nov-11 10:56 ET
A Dip, but Not a Dive, in the Philadelphia Fed Index
The Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Index fell from 8.7 in October to 3.6 in November. The Briefing.com consensus expected the index to fall to 7.5.
Both unfilled orders and new orders weakened. The new orders index barely remained in an expansion cycle as the index fell from 7.8 in October to 1.3 in November. Unfilled orders contracted in November as the index declined from 3.4 in October to -1.5.
The lack of growth in orders put downward pressure on shipments as the index dropped from 13.6 to 7.3. Conversely, the number of employees index increased from 1.4 in October to 12.0 in November, suggesting perhaps that manufacturers do not expect the drop in demand to last long.
If businesses were worried about the long-term outlook, employment would not have strengthened nearly as much and most likely would have contracted.
Both unfilled orders and new orders weakened. The new orders index barely remained in an expansion cycle as the index fell from 7.8 in October to 1.3 in November. Unfilled orders contracted in November as the index declined from 3.4 in October to -1.5.
The lack of growth in orders put downward pressure on shipments as the index dropped from 13.6 to 7.3. Conversely, the number of employees index increased from 1.4 in October to 12.0 in November, suggesting perhaps that manufacturers do not expect the drop in demand to last long.
If businesses were worried about the long-term outlook, employment would not have strengthened nearly as much and most likely would have contracted.
