Philly Fed index rises to -24.4 in April Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region worsened in April for the 16th time in the past 17 months, but at a slower pace, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported Thursday. The Philly Fed index increased to negative 24.4 in April from negative 35 in March. It's the highest reading since January. Economists were expecting an increase to around negative 30. Readings below zero indicate most firms surveyed said business was still getting worse. Details of the report were better, although orders, shipments, employment and inventories were still worsening. The new orders index improved to negative 24.3 from negative 40.7. The shipments index worsened to negative 35.7 from negative 26.5. The inventory index improved to negative 40.2 from negative 55.6. Expectations improved, suggesting that "the region's manufacturing executives expect declines to bottom out over the next six months," the bank said. The expectations index rose to 36.2 from 14.5, with 49.3% of manufacturing firms expecting better business conditions in six months. It's the highest reading on the expectations index since October 2007.

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