Forexpros – Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia-region contracted for the fourth consecutive month in August, underlining concerns over the strength of the U.S. economy, official data showed on Thursday.
In a report, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said that its manufacturing index improved by 5.8 points to minus 7.1 in August from July’s reading of minus 12.9.
Analysts had expected the index to improve by 7.9 points to a reading of minus 5.0 in August.
On the index, a reading above 0.0 indicates improving conditions, below indicates worsening conditions.
Indexes for new orders and shipments remained negative. The new orders index improved one point, while the shipments index fell 3 points.
Labor market conditions at the reporting firms deteriorated slightly this month.
Most of the survey’s future indicators deteriorated from their readings in July but still suggest that firms are expecting growth over the next six months.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar held on to losses against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.29% to trade at 1.2326.
Meanwhile, U.S. equity markets were mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average eased down 0.1%, the S&P 500 index was little changed, while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.35%.
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