The Chicago Business Barometer™, produced with MNI, rose slightly by 0.5 points to 46.6 in September. The Barometer has now been in a tight range between 45.3-47.4 for four consecutive months. The Barometer has remained in contractionary territory for 24 of the past 25 months.
The marginal rise was due to two of the five subcomponents improving significantly: Order Backlogs and Employment. Meanwhile, reductions in Supplier Deliveries, New Orders, and Production restricted the upward move.
Order Backlogs increased 5.3 points, although it still remains below the 2024 high in June. This was due to the highest proportion of respondents reporting unchanged backlogs since February.
Employment rose 5.0 points, after two consecutive months of decline, with hiring in concentrated skills.
Meanwhile Supplier Deliveries fell 4.9 points, after four successive months of increases. A reading above 50 may not be reflecting demand changes, instead possibly pointing to delays in supply chains.
New Orders and Production both weakened 1.1 points.
Prices Paid remain elevated for the second consecutive month, rising by 8.3 points, making it the highest since August 2023 and significantly above the year-to-date average of 64.6. This was due to nearly half of respondents reporting higher prices paid.
Finally, Inventories dipped 3.6 points.
The survey ran from 1 st September to 17th September.
