Empire Manufacturing Strong, Inventories Plunge to Lowest Since July 2002

- Empire Manufacturing for July rose to 26.5 versus estimates of 18.0 and a reading of 25.8 in June.

BOTTOM LINE: Manufacturing in NY state unexpectedly expanded this month at the fastest rate in a year as orders climbed and employment rose, Bloomberg said. The New Orders component of the index rose to 26.5, the highest in 16 months, versus 17.2 the prior month. The Inventories component fell to -19.8, the lowest since July 2002, versus 3.2 the prior month. The Prices Paid component fell to 34.6 versus 42.6 the prior month. The Expectations component, that gauges the outlook for the next six months, surged to 48.2 versus 44.1 the prior month. I continue to believe inventory rebuilding will help spur trend growth mostly through year-end.