Texas factory activity growth, as measured by the production index, “maintained its strong momentum in August,” according to the monthly Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, released Monday.
“While price and wage pressures remained highly elevated, a slight deceleration was seen in price increases,” according to the report.
The general business activity index declined to 30.9 in August from 32.3 in July.
The production index dipped to 29.3 from 29.4.
Capacity utilization rose to 25.2 from 25.0, the Fed reported. New orders climbed to 23.9 from 23.3, while growth rate of orders index gained to 19.9 from 17.0.
Unfilled orders fell to 9.1 from 14.9, while shipments slipped to 26.0 from 30.8, and delivery times declined to 8.9 from 12.7. The finished goods inventory reversed to positive 13.9 from negative 1.9. Prices paid for raw materials slid to 45.3 from 48.6, while prices received for finished goods dropped to 15.3 from 22.9. Wages and benefits increased to 33.4 from 32.4, while the employment index remained 28.9, and the hours worked index dropped to 19.0 from 22.2, and the capital expenditures index fell to 25.1 from 26.6.
As for future outlook (six months from now), the general business conditions index slid to 34.7 from 36.2 last month, the production index fell to 46.6 from 50.6, while capacity use decreased to 38.2 from 46.4, the Fed reported. New orders slid to 47.4 from 50.6, while growth rate of orders index grew to 40.4 from 35.1.
Unfilled orders slumped to 9.7 from 12.4, while shipments remained declined to 49.2 from 49.7, and delivery times gained to 7.1 from 4.3. The finished goods inventory rose to 9.9 from 3.8.
Prices paid for raw materials declined to 43.5 from 46.1, while prices received for finished goods gained to 32.0 from 26.6. Wages and benefits fell to 45.5 from 53.2, the employment index rose to 42.2 from 39.9, while the hours worked index slipped to 11.3 from 18.1, and the capital expenditures index jumped to 39.9 from 31.9.
The Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey is a monthly anecdotal survey of manufacturers in Texas. Over 100 manufacturers regularly participate in the Dallas Fed survey, which began collecting data in May 2004.
