Responses to a manufacturing outlook survey suggest that Texas manufacturing stayed flat for the month of April.
“Texas manufacturing experienced lull in output growth in April, continuing the pattern seen so far this year of bouncing between little to no expansion,” said Emily Kerr, senior business economist at the Dallas Fed, according to a press release by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. “The new orders index continued to suggest a contraction in demand, though not as significant as the past couple of months. Employment growth remains fairly typical, while wage growth remains elevated and even picked up this month. Outlooks worsened further, and uncertainty continues to climb.”
Business responses to this month’s Manufacturing Outlook Survey indicate that the production index decreased slightly from 2.5 to 0.9. The reading close to zero indicates that there was no change in output from the previous month. The new orders index increased five points to -9.6, but remained negative for the 11th consecutive month. Measures of the labor market point to a modest increase in employment, but a slight decrease in hours worked, and wages and prices increased for the month, with the earnings and benefits index increasing seven points to reach a new high of 37.6, which is significantly higher than the index’s average of 21.0. On the other hand, the general business activity index slid eight points to -23.4, its lowest score in nine months. The company outlook index decreased two points to -15.6, remaining negative.
“Just over half of Texas firms are currently trying to hire, and we’re seeing some relief in labor market tightness as significantly more contacts said the availability of applicants improved over the past month than worsened,” Kerr said. “We asked about firms’ ability to obtain financing and while most report having no difficulty, there was an uptick seen in the share reporting at least some difficulty, to about 35%.”
