NY Empire State Manufacturing Index (Feb)
Rep: -2.4✅Improved Reading from -14 to -2.4 ✅
Exp: -14.0
Prev: -43.7 (no revision)
Strong recovery from -43.7 to -2.4 however manufacturing is still in contractionary territory <0 on the chart. We dipped down below the 100% recession level sub -35 level on last months reading.
Framing the recent readings and chart structure
The index during this period was very volatile jumping briefly above the 0 level before falling under it again (see the red box). It is the only time in history that this occurred on the index. One could compare it to a sector gasping for air above the 0 level over that period, however the S&P500 was rallying hard as the index gasped for air. This highlights the need to review other indexes and charts, and not rely solely on the NYESM Index in isolation.