The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank released its manufacturing index on Thursday. The index increased to 8.3 in August from 5.7 in July, exceeding expectations for a rise to 7.0.
A reading above zero indicates expansion.
The increase was partly driven by a rise in shipments. The shipments index jumped 16.7 in August from 4.4 in July.
The new orders index decreased to 5.8 in August from 7.1 in July.
The prices paid index slid to 6.2 in August from 20.2 in July, while the prices received index were down to -4.9 from 1.7.
The number of employees index rose to 5.3 in August from -0.4 last month.
According to the report, the future general activity index rose to 43.1 in August from 41.5 in July.