Richmond Fed Sees Pickup In Area Manufacturing

“Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region advanced somewhat faster in March than a month earlier,” according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.

“Looking at the main components of activity, shipments grew at a modest pace, while new orders were virtually unchanged and employment steadied. Other indicators were mixed,” the Richmond Fed said.

“Backlogs of orders landed in negative territory and capacity utilization turned positive after being negative for the last three months. Vendor delivery times grew at a considerably quicker rate, while manufacturers reported somewhat slower growth in finished goods inventories.”

The manufacturing index increased to 6 in March from 2 in February. Shipments improved to 5 from zero, the Fed reported.

As for future outlook, the shipments index was 40, up from 37 last month, while the volume of new orders index dipped to 37 from 39.

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