Biggest drop ever for Fed's Philadelphia manufacturing index

Another recession signal:

  "The region's manufacturing executives expect no growth over the next six months," reports the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia in its October Business Outlook Survey, a long-running benchmark for factory spending and hiring. 

  "The survey's broadest measure of manufacturing conditions" has suffered "its largest one-month decline ever... Demand for manufactured goods, as represented by the survey's new orders index, decreased 36 points, to a reading of -30.5.... The percentage of firms reporting a decrease in employment (28 percent) was greater than the percentage reporting an increase (10 percent)."

  On the bright side, "Price pressures eased notably this month."  Fed survey here. Bloomberg story here. 

  Examples of production cuts, actual and threatened:

  Vishay Intertechnology Inc., Malvern-based electronic components maker, says it's cutting earnings projections and may have to write off the cost of past acquisitions. "Revenues in the third quarter declined due to a worldwide worsening of end market conditions, which accelerated in September."   Statement here.

  See also today's Inquirer story on the lack of ships in Aker Philadelphia Shipyard's production pipeline due to financing problems. Story here.