Empire State index moderates to 1.5 in October

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch)
Manufacturing in the New York region improved at a slowest pace in five months in October, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Tuesday
The regional bank's "Empire State" general business conditions index edged down to 1.5 in October from 6.3 in September
The decline was larger than expected
A MarketWatch survey of economists called for a reading of 6.0 in October
Readings greater than zero signal expansion
The gain is October is the smallest since the index declined in May
Details of the report were mixed
The key new orders sub-index rose to 7.8 in October from 2.4 in the prior month while shipments slipped to 13.1 from 16.4 in September
Labor market conditions were also mixed in the month
The index for number of employees retreated to 3.6 in October from 7.5 in September
The average workweek rose to 3.6 from 1.1 in the prior month