--Phila. Fed Jan prices-paid index 12.9 vs Dec's revised 15.8
--Phila. Fed Jan business index lowest level since Dec 1990
--Phila. Fed Jan new orders index -30.9 vs Dec's revised 4.0
--Phila. Fed Jan prices-received index -5.5 vs Dec revised -3.2
--Phila. Fed Jan employment index -23.5 vs Dec's revised -12.4
--Phila. Fed Jan future business index -16.3 vs Dec revised -4.2
By BridgeNews
New York--Jan. 18--The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Research Department reported that its manufacturing index plunged to -36.8 in January from a revised -4.2 in December. The latest reading marks the lowest level for the index since December 1990 and the second largest one-month decline in the 32-year history of the survey.
* * * The prices-paid index was 12.9 in January, compared with a revised 15.8 in December, while the prices-received index was -5.5 in January, down from a revised -3.2 last month.
The employment index was -23.5 in January, compared with -12.4 in December, while the future business activity index for six months from January stood at -16.3, compared with a revised -4.2 in December.
Meanwhile, the new orders index stood at -30.9 in January, compared with a revised 4.0 in December.
All the manufacturers in this survey are located in the third Federal Reserve district, which includes Delaware, the eastern two-thirds of Pennsylvania, and southern New Jersey.
About 150 companies--all of which have 350 employees or more--are surveyed each month.
The Philadelphia Fed said in a release that the decline in the future business activity index is the lowest reading since 1990 and suggests "that the declines are not expected to be temporary."