MNI DATA IMPACT: Chicago Business Barometer Slips In September

--MNI Chicago Business Barometer 47.1 Sep Vs 50.4 Aug

     LONDON (MNI) - The Chicago Business Barometer, produced by MNI, slipped to

47.1 in September, down from 50.4 last month, weighed by a fall in Production to

a 10-year low. The index returned to contractionary territory, where it had been

in both June and July.

     The following are the key points from the September MNI Chicago Report:

     --Business confidence dropped below the 50-mark to 47.3 in Q3, leaving the

index at the lowest level on a quarterly basis since Q3 2009.

     --Supplier Deliveries and Employment are the only Business Activity

components higher on the month, increasing to 54.8 and 45.6, respectively.

     --Production saw the largest decline, falling by 15.8% or 7.6 points, to

40.4, the lowest since May 2009. 

     --Demand slowed in September, indicated by a sharp fall in New Orders,

which shifted back into contraction by ticking down 7.6 points to 48.5.

     --Inventories slipped further into contraction, with the index lower by

6.2% to 41.7. The index hit a forty-month low in September, highlighting that

firms continued to run down inventories.

     --Labor demand improved slightly to 45.6 in September, but the quarterly

average fell to 44.1, recording the weakest quarter since Q4 2009.

     --This month's special question asked firms how see supplier delivery times

faring in the next three months. The majority (65%) expect supplier delivery

times to remain unchanged, while 24% anticipate longer times and 11% forecast

shorter delivery times.

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

--MNI London Bureau; +44 0203 865 3814; email: irene.prihoda@marketnews.com

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