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Business Title: Philadelphia Area Manufacturing Gains as Orders Fuel Factory-Led Recovery, Highest Level In 5 Years Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Manufacturing in the Philadelphia region expanded in February for a sixth straight month as orders surged to the highest level in more than five years, another sign that factories are leading the economic recovery. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s general economic index rose to 17.6 from 15.2. Readings greater than zero signal growth. Measures of employment and shipments accelerated, and inventories expanded for the first time since September 2007. Surging exports, inventory replenishment and corporate spending on new equipment are fueling a factory-led recovery from the worst recession in seven decades. The manufacturing expansion may spur the labor market recovery needed to boost consumer spending and keep the economy expanding. “The inventory cycle will continue to add to production levels well into 2010,” said Robert Stein, a senior economist at First Trust Portfolios LP in Wheaton, Illinois. “Manufacturing is doing well pretty much across the board.” A separate report from the Conference Board today showed the index of U.S. leading indicators rose in January for a 10th straight month, pointing to an economy that will keep expanding through the first half of this year. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index increased 0.2 percent to 1,101.53 at 11:11 a.m. in New York. The 10-year Treasury note fell, pushing up the yield five basis points to 3.78 percent. Other reports from the government showed jobless claims rose by 31,000 to 473,000 last week, while wholesale prices increased 1.4 percent in January after a 0.4 percent gain in December. Economists’ Forecasts Economists forecast the Philadelphia Fed’s factory gauge would rise to 17, according to the median of 58 projections in a Bloomberg News survey. Estimates ranged from zero to 23. The Philadelphia Fed’s employment index rose to 7.4, the highest level since October 2007, from 6.1 the prior month. The new orders measure rose to 22.7 from 3.2, and shipments climbed to 19.7 from 11. The index of prices paid fell to 32.4 from 33.2 in January. Prices received increased to 3.7 from 2.7. The gauge of expectations for the next six months decreased to 35.8 from 43.3 while remaining positive for a 14th straight month. The overall index number isn’t composed of the individual measures, so some economists consider it a gauge of sentiment among manufacturers. Two days ago, figures from the New York Fed showed business activity in that region expanded in February at the fastest pace in four months. Industrial Production Another Fed report yesterday showed industrial production nationwide rose in January for a seventh straight month. The plant-use rate increased to 72.6 percent, the highest level in more than a year. The U.S. economy is forecast to grow 3 percent this year, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg in the first week of February. That follows a 2.4 percent contraction last year as the economy sank into its worst recession in seven decades. Manufacturers, particularly of exported goods, are seeing a pickup in demand, fueled in part by a 10.7 percent rate of economic growth in China in the fourth quarter. Latrobe, Pennsylvania-based Kennametal Inc., a maker and distributor of mining, metal-working and energy tools, last month reported an 8 percent increase in fiscal second quarter sales from the prior quarter as the world economy recovers. “We are continuing to see signs of a slow, but steady global economic recovery,” Chief Executive Officer Carlos Cardoso said on a conference call Jan. 28. “Industrial production activity is higher in most geographical regions, with emerging markets leading the way and mature markets beginning to recover.”
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#1. To: Brian S (#0)
I noticed you forgot to post the inflation rate for January today. Don't worry, I did that for you as you were too busy pumping.
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