Manufacturing activity across NYS “grew robustly” according to the Empire State Manufacturing Survey for March 2018 released today. The general business conditions index rose 9.4 points to 22.5 (a reading above 0 indicates expansion), led by Shipments (up 14.5 to 27.0), Unfilled Orders (up 7.8 to 12.7), Delivery Time (up 5.1 to 16.2) and New Orders (up 3.3 to 16.8). These results perpetuate a steady uptrend that began in early 2016. The six-month future outlook remained strong at 44.1, but was down 6.4 points from a six-year high in January. These results are consistent with our own regional results from the most recent Institute of Supply Management – Buffalo survey which took a sharp upturn in early 2018. In short, manufacturing continues to show strength regionally, statewide and nationally. See the full report here.
