The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Business Barometer rose to 61.5 in January from 58.7 in December, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Friday.
Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a 57.5 reading for the indicator.
The production index rose to 66.6 from 64.2, the new orders index grew to 66.4 from 64.4, the order backlogs index increased to 54.3 from 52.0 and inventories rose to 48.7 from 38.6 in the prior survey. The employment index jumped to 59.8 from 47.6 and the supplier deliveries index was at 55.3, off from 57.0 last month. The prices paid index increased to 66.2 from 55.6.
