The Philly Fed's Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey is a monthly report for the Third Federal Reserve District, covers eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware. While it focuses exclusively on business in this district, this regional survey gives a generally reliable clue as to the direction of the broader Chicago Fed's National Activity Index.

The latest Manufacturing Index came in at -19.4, down from last month's -8.7. The 3-month moving average came in at -8.6, down from last month. The Six-Month Outlook came in at -7.1, up from the previous month's -14.9. Since this is a diffusion index, negative readings indicate contraction, positive ones indicate expansion.

The -19.4headline number came in well below the -6.2 forecast at Investing.com.

Here is the introduction from the survey:

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to decline, according to the firms responding to the November Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The general activity index declined further, the new orders index remained negative, and the shipments index remained positive but low. The employment index declined but continued to suggest overall hiring, and the price indexes continued to suggest overall increases. Although the survey’s future indexes rose slightly, they continued to suggest that the firms expect overall declines in activity and new orders six months from now. (Full Report)

The first chart below gives us a look at this diffusion index since 2000, which shows us how it has behaved in proximity to the two 21st century recessions. The red dots show the indicator itself, which is quite noisy, and the 3-month moving average, which is more useful as an indicator of coincident economic activity. We can see periods of contraction in 2011, 2012, and 2015, and a shallower contraction in 2013. The contraction due to COVID-19 is clear in 2020.

In the next chart, we see the complete series, which dates from May 1960. For proof of the high volatility of the headline indicator, note that the average absolute monthly change across this data series is 8.0.

The next chart is an overlay of the General Activity Index and the Future General Activity Index — the outlook six months ahead.

More By This Author: