Philadelphia Fed Factory Gauge Rebounds by Most in a Decade

(Bloomberg) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s survey of factories showed conditions in the region rebounded sharply in July on improvements in orders, shipments and employment, easing concern of a deeper retrenchment in manufacturing.

The general activity index surged by 21.5 points, the most since June 2009 when the last recession ended, to 21.8 after slumping to 0.3 in the previous month, according to a report Thursday. That exceed all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of economists whose median projection called for a reading of 5.

Earlier this week, the New York Fed said its Empire State survey of manufacturers rose by 12.9 points to a reading of 4.3 in July.

The Philadelphia Fed’s gauge of the outlook six months from now increased to the highest level since May 2018.

--With assistance from Nancy Moran.

To contact the reporter on this story: Vince Golle in Washington at vgolle@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Scott Lanman at slanman@bloomberg.net

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