The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Business Barometer dropped to 48.7 in September from 54.4 in August, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Wednesday.
The data is compiled on a seasonally adjusted basis. An index reading below 50 signals a slowing economy, while a level above 50 suggests expansion.
Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a 53.0 reading for the index.
“The drop in the Barometer to below 50 was its fifth time in contraction this year and comes amid downgrades to global economic growth and intense volatility in financial markets which have slowed activity in some industries. The latest decline followed two months of moderate expansion, and while growth in Q3 accelerated a little from Q2, the speed of the September descent is a source of concern,” according to a release.
The decline in the barometer resulted from a collapse in production growth and a sharp fall in new orders, according to the release.
