Kansas Fed: Growth in manufacturing activity strengthened further in Jan

"Growth in Tenth District manufacturing activity strengthened further in January, and firms’ expectations for future activity increased. Most price indexes rose moderately from the previous month, with some indexes reaching five to ten year highs," the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City reported on Thursday.

Key highlights

The month-over-month composite index was 16 in January, higher than 13 in December and 15 in November.

The shipments, new orders, and order backlog indexes all rose moderately.

The employment index inched higher from 16 to 18, while the production index was unchanged.

The raw materials inventory index climbed from 7 to 15, and the finished goods inventory index moved into positive territory.