Some Fifth District manufacturing firms reported softening conditions in November, according to the most recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite manufacturing index remained negative but edged up from -10 in October to -9 in November. Of its three component indexes, the indexes for shipments and employment deteriorated slightly, edging downward to -8 and -1, respectively. The third component index, volume of new orders, however, showed some improvement, increasing from -22 to -14 in November. The wage index decreased notably from 34 to 25 in November but remained elevated. The local ... (full story)