The Chicago
Federal Reserve announced on Monday the Chicago Fed national activity index
(CFNAI), a weighted average of 85 different economic indicators, came in at 1.18
in July, down from an upwardly revised 5.33 in June (originally 4.11), pointing
to a slower growth in economic activity than in June but still
well-above-average of 0.01.
Economists had
forecast the index to come in at 2.73 in July.
At the same
time, the index’s three-month moving average moved up to +3.59 in July from -2.78
in June.
According to
the report, three of the four broad categories of indicators used to construct
the index made positive contributions in July, but all four categories dropped
from June.
Production-related
indicators made a positive contribution of 1.09 to the CFNAI in July, down from
+2.21 in June. Employment-related indicators contributed +0.38 to the CFNAI in July,
down from +1.94 in June. Meanwhile, the contribution of the sales, orders, and
inventories category to the CFNAI decreased to -0.31 in July from +0.77 in June.
The contribution of the personal consumption and housing category to the CFNAI
improved decreased to +0.02 in July from +0.42 in June.