Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index slows for second straight month

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s manufacturing index fell 7 points to a seasonally adjusted reading of 17.2 in August, the regional bank said Thursday. This is the second straight decline in the index after it his 27.5 in June.

Any reading above zero indicates improving conditions. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected a 20 reading.

The headline index is based on a single standalone question about business conditions unlike the manufacturing index which is a composite based on components Below the headline, the new orders index fell 4 points to 19. The shipments index fell 5.9 points to 9.4. The survey found that optimism about the next six months remained solid, with the index for future activity rising 3 points to 38.8.