Regional Fed Manufacturing Composite Falls to 18.4 From 26.5

Regional Fed Manufacturing Composite came in at 18.4 on September 1, 2026, 8.1 points below the prior reading of 26.5. On a diffusion index the sign is the signal: above zero means more respondents reporting expansion than contraction, and the distance from zero is how lopsided the split is.

• September 1, 2026: 18.4
• prior (August 1, 2026): 26.5
• change: -8.1 pts

Regional Fed Manufacturing Composite has ranged from -7.9 (December 1, 2025) to 26.5 (August 1, 2026) over the archived window, which puts the current reading 76% of the way up that range.

Survey readings are noisy month to month, so the standing trend matters more than any single print: this series has been rising across recent readings. Source: Federal Reserve district surveys via FRED.