US Empire State Manufacturing Survey general business conditions index dropped to 2.0 in September, down from -4.8 and missed expectation of 4.0. 27% of respondents reported that conditions had improved over the month, but 25% said conditions had worsened. Number of employees index jumped sharply from -1.6 to 9.7, back in positive territory. The index for future business conditions fell -12 points to 13.7, suggesting that “optimism about future conditions waned”.
