Show an ad over header. AMP

New York manufacturing activity growth decelerated sharply this month

17 August 2021
Dan Ackermann
Date: New York Fed; Chart: Axios Visuals

Manufacturing activity growth decelerated sharply in New York.

Why it matters: The slowdown could signal a reaction to the growing spread of the Delta variant. And activity in New York generally moves in tandem with other regions of the U.S.

State of play: The Empire State Manufacturing Survey, which tracks activity in New York, is the first of a series of monthly manufacturing reports published by the regional Federal Reserve banks.

  • The August surveys are of particular interest because they occurred amid a spike in COVID infections, the impact of which was not fully captured in the July economic reports.

By the numbers: The survey’s general business conditions index plunged to 18.3 in August from 43.0 in July. A positive number signals growth, but the drop represents a sharp deceleration in activity.

  • This August print was much worse than the 28.0 expected by economists.
  • The shipments, employment and new orders subindexes all deteriorated significantly.

What they’re saying: "The weakening in the Empire State survey data in August could have been some payback from the very strong July data," JPMorgan economist Daniel Silver says.

  • "The survey also could be picking up a response to recent virus-related developments," he adds.

What to watch: For more up-to-date color on manufacturing activity, the Philadelphia Fed’s survey will be released on Aug. 19, the Richmond Fed’s on Aug. 24, the Kansas City Fed’s on Aug. 26, and the Dallas Fed’s on Aug. 30.

  • "We expect constraints on pandemic-stricken supply chains and labor markets to gradually ease in the coming months, but these headwinds risk staying strong amid the rapid spread of the Delta variant," Oxford Economics lead U.S. economist Oren Klachkin said in a report.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

Section2

Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.