Empire State index for July jumps past forecasts

A closely-followed gauge of factory sector conditions in and around New York state improved more quickly than expected in July as the pandemic situation improved.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's manufacturing sector gauge jumped from a reading of -0.2 points for June to 17.2 in July (consensus: 5.5).

All of the main subindices recorded increases, save those for prices and inventories.

Key among those, the sub-index tied to new orders jumped from 3.3 to 18.5, while another tied to hiring edged up from -3.5 to 0.4.

The sub-index tracking the prices paid by firms on the other hand slipped, from -0.6 to -4.5.

The so-called 'Empire State' index covers manufacturing in the jurisdiction of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which encompasses New York state, the 12 northern counties of New Jersey, Fairfield County in Connecticut, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.