After 5 months of missed expectations, Empire Fed manufacturing beat expectations by the most since Feb 2013, spiking to the highest since May 2012. Most sub-indices were positive but it is perhaps worth noting that despite all this exuberance, over 70% of companies expected no improvement in employment and over 80% expected no improvement in the average workweek. While inflation is nowehere to be seen, it is interesting that the Empire Fed's Prices Paid index spiked this month by the most since March 2012. Hope remains that Capex and Tech Spend will pick up as the outlook index rose by the most in 5 months (though remains historically low).
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Charts: Bloomberg