RICHMOND, Va., Aug. 27 (UPI) -- The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, Va., said Central Atlantic manufacturing strengthened in August with gains in new orders and capacity utilization.
The manufacturing index for the region rose from minus 11 to 14, the Fed said.
The component index for new orders climbed from minus 15 to 16. The index measuring the percentage of output compared to factories going full steam, called capacity utilization, rose from minus 9 to plus 3.
The number of employees index rose from 0 to 6 while the index measuring hours worked rose from 2 to 8.
The wages index also rose, climbing from 8 to 13.
The backlog of orders index remained negative, but rose from minus 24 to minus 6. Only one component index slid in the month, vendor lead time, which dropped from 3 to 1.
