The Federal Reserve’s Fifth District manufacturing index stood at -2 in October 2026, unchanged from September, signaling contraction for a second consecutive month. The reading stayed at its lowest level since February and missed market forecasts for stabilization. The new orders index fell to -8 in October from -6 in September, while the employment index declined to 3 from 7. In contrast, the shipments index improved to zero from -5. The local business conditions index weakened to -8 in October from -6 in September; while the future local business conditions index also fell to 7 from 10. The future indexes for shipments and new orders remained in positive territory while the expectations index for employment remained at 8 in October. On prices, the average growth rate of prices paid was unchanged from September, while prices received increased at a faster pace. Over the next 12 months, firms expect growth in both prices paid and prices received to moderate. source: Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond

Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index in the United States remained unchanged at -2 points in October. Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index in the United States averaged 1.85 points from 1993 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 27.00 points in March of 2004 and a record low of -54.00 points in April of 2020. This page provides - United States Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. United States Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on November of 2026.

Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index in the United States remained unchanged at -2 points in October. Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index in the United States is expected to be 3.00 points by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the United States Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index is projected to trend around 1.80 points in 2027 and 2.00 points in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-09-22 02:00 PM
Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index
Sep -2 4 5 3
2026-10-27 02:00 PM
Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index
Oct -2 -2 0 -3
2026-11-24 03:00 PM
Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index
Nov -2


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index -2.00 -2.00 points Oct 2026
Richmond Fed Manufacturing Shipments Index 0.00 -5.00 points Oct 2026
Richmond Fed Services Index 2.00 0.00 points Oct 2026


United States Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index
The Richmond Manufacturing Index measures the conditions of the manufacturing sector for the District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and most of West Virginia. The index is derived from a survey of 190 manufacturing plants and based on three individual index with the following weights: Shipments (33 percent), New Orders (40 percent) and Employment (27 percent). The index can range between +100 and -100; a reading above zero indicates expansion, while below zero suggests a contraction.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
-2.00 -2.00 27.00 -54.00 1993 - 2026 points Monthly
SA

News Stream
US Fifth District Manufacturing Remains in Contraction
The Federal Reserve’s Fifth District manufacturing index stood at -2 in October 2026, unchanged from September, signaling contraction for a second consecutive month. The reading stayed at its lowest level since February and missed market forecasts for stabilization. The new orders index fell to -8 in October from -6 in September, while the employment index declined to 3 from 7. In contrast, the shipments index improved to zero from -5. The local business conditions index weakened to -8 in October from -6 in September; while the future local business conditions index also fell to 7 from 10. The future indexes for shipments and new orders remained in positive territory while the expectations index for employment remained at 8 in October. On prices, the average growth rate of prices paid was unchanged from September, while prices received increased at a faster pace. Over the next 12 months, firms expect growth in both prices paid and prices received to moderate.
2026-10-27
US Fifth District Manufacturing Unexpectedly Declines
The Federal Reserve’s Fifth District manufacturing index fell to -2 in September 2026, marking its first negative reading in six months, down from 4 in August and contrasting with market expectations of an expansion in activity at 5. Both shipments and the volume of new orders fell into negative territory, to -5 and -6, respectively, while the order backlog deteriorated further, falling to -10 from -7. Meanwhile, the employment index rose to 7 from -2 in the previous month. Over the next six months, expectations for shipments (33 vs 26) and the volume of new orders (32) remained firmly in expansionary territory, although sentiment weakened for capital expenditures (-1 vs 4) and raw material inventories (-1 vs 3). Prices paid and received are expected to decline over the next 12 months, while employment expectations dropped notably to 8 from 20. Meanwhile, the future local business conditions index continued to decline, falling to 10 from 16.
2026-09-22
US Fifth District Manufacturing Edges Down
The Federal Reserve’s Fifth District manufacturing index edged down to 4 in August 2026 from 5 in July, remaining well below market expectations of 7. Manufacturing activity was little changed during the month, as shipments increased to 11 from 8, while new orders declined to 3 from 5. Backlogs of orders (-7 vs 4) and capital expenditures (-5 vs 0) both swung into negative territory, while employment fell to -2 from 2. Meanwhile, the average growth rates of prices paid (6.22 vs 6.08) and prices received (4.09 vs 3.96) increased. The local business conditions index also declined to 4 from 10 in July. Over the next six months, firms remained relatively optimistic, with future new orders edging up to 32 from 31, while shipment expectations eased to 26 from 33. Employment expectations rose to 20 from 15, while expected growth in prices paid and received moderated. Meanwhile, the future local business conditions index continued to decline, falling to 16 from 19.
2026-08-25