Empire State Manufacturing Survey: Number of employees: Future (increase vs decrease; diffusion index; percentage points; seasonally unadjusted) - United States - NY FED - Monthly
This series is part of the dataset: Empire State Manufacturing Survey (NY FED)
Download Full Dataset (.xlsx)Latest updates. According to recent survey data about manufacturing firms in the State of New York, the seasonally unadjusted diffusion index for the number of employees (share of CEOs seeing a future increase minus share forecasting a decrease) was 1.8 in August 2025, versus 5.5 in July.
Sample. The montly series presented in the chart has 290 data points overall. The series covers the time range extending from July 2001 to August 2025.
History. Here's a snapshot of some summary statistics computed on the full sample: the diffusion index was equal on average to 18.0; it reached a minimum of -23.6 in March 2009; it recorded its maximum of 44.5 in April 2021.
Latest values
| Date | Value - Percentage points |
|---|---|
| 2025-06-30 | 7.3 |
| 2025-07-31 | 5.5 |
| 2025-08-31 | 1.8 |
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Series Metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Description | Diffusion index for the question: Will the number of employees increase or decrease over the next six months? |
| Country | United States |
| Economic concept | Business survey response |
| Data type | Leading indicator of the business cycle |
| Deflation method | Not applicable |
| Seasonally adjusted | No |
| Rescaling | None |
| Frequency | Montly |
| Unit | Percentage points |
| Source | Federal Reserve Bank of New York |
| Source type | Central bank |
| Data licence | Free use subject to conditions |
| Measure type | Diffusion index (share of respondents reporting an increase minus share reporting a decrease) |