Mid-Atlantic Manufacturing Sector Heats Up in June

Factory activity in the U.S. mid-Atlantic region grew at a faster pace than expected in June, accelerating from the previous month, a survey showed on Thursday.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank said its business activity index jumped to 17.8 from 15.4 in May. Analysts were looking for a reading of 14.

Any reading above zero indicates expansion in the region's manufacturing. The survey covers factories in eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware.

A gauge on new orders rose to 16.8 from 10.5 and an employment component rose to 11.9 from 7.8.

Survey respondents' view on the coming months improved by a large margin, with the gauge of business conditions for the next six months rising to 52 from 37.4.

The Philly Fed survey is seen as one of the first monthly indicators of the health of U.S. manufacturing leading up to the national report by the Institute for Supply Management.

(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)