Urgent.. The manufacturing index for the state of Philadelphia records its highest reading since April 2021.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia released the manufacturing index data for the state during January on Thursday, which was very positive and much higher than market expectations.

According to the data, the Philadelphia manufacturing index recorded growth at 44.3 points in January, which was contrary to market expectations that forecasted a contraction of 5.0 points. The index had recorded a contraction of 16.4 points in December.

This index is based on a survey of manufacturers in the Philadelphia area to measure the general conditions of businesses, as companies are quickly affected by the economic situation and market conditions within the United States.

Thus, it measures any changes in the status of businesses and serves as one of the indicators of economic activity in the upcoming period within the United States, which reflects on the trading of the US dollar, especially as it coincides with data on US unemployment claims.

It is worth noting that if the index reading is above zero, it reflects an improvement in the manufacturing sector conditions in Pennsylvania, while a reading below zero indicates poor conditions. Additionally, it should be noted that data for this survey is gathered from around 250 manufacturers in Philadelphia.