New York Manufacturing Index Improves

Manufacturing activity in the New York region improved this month, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Wednesday.

The regional Fed’s “Empire State Index,” generally the first economic indicator in a given month, rose to a reading of negative 1.7, from a negative 38.2 reading last month that had been its lowest level on record, the Fed said.

The reading was higher than economists’ forecasts of a negative 35 reading, Bloomberg reported. Readings above zero indicate expansion, while below that show contraction.

Manufacturing is one of trucking’s largest and most important customers.