Philly Fed April manufacturing business index +15.5 vs +2.3 expected

Philly Fed business index:

• Two-year high
• Prior was +3.2
• Employment: -10.7 vs -9.6 prior
• New orders: +12.2 vs +5.4 prior
• Prices paid: +23.0 vs +3.7 prior
• Prices received: +5.5 vs +4.6 prior
• Shipments: +19.1 vs +11.4 prior
• Unfilled orders: +0.8 vs +1.0 prior
• Delivery times: -9.4 vs -16.7 prior
• Inventories: -8.9 vs +4.4 prior
• Avg employee workweek: -18.7 vs -0.2 prior

Look-ahead indexes:

• Six month index: +34.3 vs 38.6 prior
• Employment: +12.8 vs +5.8 prior
• New orders: +42.8 vs +49.9 prior
• Shipments: +29.3 vs +43.9 prior
• Prices paid: +54.5 vs +38.0 prior
• Prices received: +34.4 vs +37.1 prior

The jump in prices paid is concerning and fits in with broader worries about inflation, though it could also reflect rising oil prices rather than broad cost pressures.

As for prices paid, you could argue that last month was a one-off.

It’s also nowhere near where it was in 2022.

This article was written by Adam Button at www.forexlive.com.