In case you missed this, a carefully worded Empire State Manufacturing Survey for November 2009, has a falling off the cliff drop of 20.96 points on general business conditions.

The October 2009 number was 23.51. November is 2.55.

The general business conditions index fell 21 points, to 2.6. The indexes for new orders and shipments posted somewhat more moderate declines but also moved close to zero. Input prices picked up a bit, as the prices paid index rebounded to roughly its November level; however, the prices received index moved further into negative territory, suggesting that price increases are not being passed along. Current employment indexes slipped back into negative territory. Future indexes remained well above zero but signaled somewhat less widespread optimism than in recent months. Indexes for expected prices paid and received declined moderately but remained well above zero.

According to Reuters, this is the largest drop on record and the lowest absolute reading since July 2009.

The report also reflects the PPI with profit margins getting squeezed.

The prices paid index rose 9 points to 19.7, reversing a drop of similar magnitude in November and suggesting some renewed price pressures. At the same time, the prices received index slipped 6.6 points to -9.2, its lowest level since August.

New orders dropped 14 points to 2.2 in a month.

Employment went negative.

The index for number of employees slipped 7 points to -5.3, and the average workweek index fell 11 points to -5.3.

This is one scary report for while New York has a small amount of manufacturing, this report has been correlated to the ISM and is also an early indicator for national reports.

The ADS index, also sloping downward, will be updated on the 17th.