Output at factories in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States slowed this month, a regional central bank said Thursday, the latest evidence that the U.S. economy may be headed for softer growth.
The Philadelphia Federal Reserve said its business activity index fell to minus 2.2 in June, its first negative reading in 25 months, from 7.3 in May.
Wall Street analysts had been predicting a rise to 10.0. A measure above zero denotes growth in the sector while a measure below zero points to contraction.
The employment index rose to 7.1 from 5.4 in May, while the six-month outlook for business conditions rose to 30.6 from 22.3. The measure of new orders fell to to 2.5 from 15.0.
The unfilled orders index slumped to -19 from -0.1 in May. The delivery times index fell to -13.2 in June from a barely positive reading of 0.5 in May.
The regional survey is one of the first indicators of U.S. manufacturing every month and is often used to gauge the overall state of factories nationwide.