The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Business Barometer fell to 56.7 in August from 62.3 in July, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Tuesday. Economists had expected a 62.3 reading.
Regional business activity in the New York City area also expanded in August, albeit at a much slower pace, according to the current business conditions index of the Institute for Supply Management-New York’s Report on Business.
The current business conditions index slumped to 55.6 in August from 58.4 in July. The report’s six-month outlook index fell to 58.4 from 69.6. The NY-BCI climbed to 466.5 from 463.6.
The seasonally adjusted Milwaukee index dropped to 59 in August from 66 in July, according to the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee.
“The major regional manufacturing indexes were mixed in August, indicating that tomorrow’s ISM manufacturing survey will likely decline slightly but remain in modest expansionary territory,” Steven Wood, chief economist at Insight Economics, said in a research note.
