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 -0.45 in September, sharply down from a revised +0.15 in August (originally +0.10), pointing to slower economic growth.

Economists had forecast the index to come in at -0.37 in September.

At the same time, the index’s three-month moving average fell to -0.25 in September from -0.10 in August.

According to the report, three of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index dropped from August, and all four categories made negative contributions to the index in September. Production-related indicators made a negative contribution of -0.37 to the CFNAI in September, down from +0.19 in August. Meanwhile, the contribution of the sales, orders, and inventories category to the CFNAI edged down to -0.02 in September from -0.01 in August, and the contribution of the personal consumption and housing category to the CFNAI ticked down to -0.04 from a neutral value in August. Employment-related indicators contributed -0.02 to the CFNAI in September, up slightly from -0.03 in August.