NY Fed manufacturing gauge improves in November

Manufacturing sector conditions in the jurisdiction of the Federal Reserve bank of New York improved modestly in November, according to the results of one of the most widely-followed monthly surveys of activity.

The NY Fed's index of general business conditions in the sector rose from a reading of -6.8 in October to 1.5 for November.

That was ahead of economists' forecasts for an improvement to -3.0.

In parallel, a gauge of new orders for companies increased from -5.6 to 3.1 while a sub-index linked to inventory levels fell from -12.3 to -23.6.

Similarly, a gauge of the prices paid by firms fell back, from a reading of 22.6 to 15.5.

Similarly, subindices tracking the number of employees on payrolls and the length of the average work week decreased from -4.7 to -10.9 and from -10.4 to -10.9, respectively.