U.S. Economy Lost Pace in December -- Chicago Fed
25 January 2024 - 1:59PM
Dow Jones News
By Joshua Kirby
The U.S. economy weakened at the end of the year as production
slipped and employment fell back, data from the Federal Reserve
Bank of Chicago showed Thursday.
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index decreased to minus 0.15
in December from 0.01 in November, with all categories of
indicators contributing to the decline. The reading below zero
suggests economic activity is expanding at a slightly slower rate
than its average historical trend.
The CFNAI index, designed to gauge overall economic activity and
inflationary pressures, is composed of 85 economic indicators from
four broad categories of data: production and income; employment,
unemployment and hours; personal consumption and housing; and
sales, orders and inventories.
Production-related indicators decreased further below zero, as
did those gauging employment. Sales, orders and inventories turned
negative, while personal consumption and housing fell but remained
in positive territory.
The CFNAI diffusion index - which captures how much the change
in the monthly index is spread among the 85 indicators over three
months - fell a little to minus 0.32. The index's headline
three-month moving average similarly declined.
Write to Joshua Kirby at joshua.kirby@wsj.com;
@joshualeokirby
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 25, 2024 08:44 ET (13:44 GMT)
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