Another good manufacturing report. April PMI should be very strong.
Led by improvements in production- and employment-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index increased to –0.07 in March, up from –0.44
in February. Three of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index made positive contributions in March, while the consumption and housing category made the lone negative contribution.
The index’s three-month moving average, CFNAI-MA3, increased to –0.18 in March from –0.31 in February. March’s CFNAI-MA3 suggests that growth in national economic activity, while still below average, continues to improve.
With regard to inflation, the amount of economic slack reflected in the CFNAI-MA3 indicates subdued inflationary pressure from economic activity over the coming year.
Production-related indicators made a contribution of +0.18 to the index in March, compared with +0.04 in February. Manufacturing industrial production increased 0.9 percent in March after increasing 0.2 percent in February, and manufacturing capacity utilization rose to 70.0 percent in March from 69.4 percent in the previous month. The manufacturing capacity utilization rate in March reached its highest level since November 2008.
Related posts:
- CHICAGO FED NATIONAL ACTIVITY INDEX EDGES UP IN JULY
- CHICAGO FED NATIONAL ACTIVITY INDEX UP IN JANUARY
- Chicago Fed Activity Index Rises in April
- June Chicago Fed National Activity Index Declines
- CHICAGO FED INDEX DECLINES IN FEBRUARY
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
