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MNI Chicago Business Barometer™ Falls Further to 52.1 in July

US DATA
MNI (London)

The Chicago Business BarometerTM, produced with MNI, slid further in July, extending June’s decline. The indicator fell 3.9-points to 52.1, the lowest level since August 2020

  • Production fell 7.0 points to 48.2 in July, a two-year low. Close to a fifth of firms saw lower production.
  • New Orders slid a further 5.4 points to 44.5, the lowest in 25 months. Overall demand waned in July.
  • Order Backlogs slumped 6.8 points in July to 48.4. As new order levels softened, a quarter of businesses saw backlogs decline as they worked through postponed production.
  • Employment grew 5.4 points to a current year high of 56.1 as the labor market continued to tighten.
  • Supplier Deliveries ticked down 2.0 points to 67.1. This was the lowest since October 2020 as deliveries remained slow and lead times lengthened. Both the war in Ukraine and knock-on effects of Chinese lockdowns continued to hamper supply chains.
  • Inventories saw the largest decrease this month, plunging 16.2 points, a stark contrast to May’s near 50-year high.
  • Prices Paid rose 2.3 points to 81.9 as price pressures intensified. Transparency issues regarding grounds for supplier price increases were flagged.
  • The survey ran from July 1 to 19.

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