The New York "Empire State" general economic conditions index advanced to 13.5 from a revised 8.2 in December, said the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Tuesday.
"It's a reflection of improvement in demand," said Millan Mulraine, a senior U.S. strategist at TD Securities in New York.
"Manufacturing activity generally continued to expand, although the pace of growth has slowed for selected subsectors such as technology products," said the Federal Reserve on January 11.