Chicago Fed National Activity Index declines to 0.79 in August

The Chicago Federal Reserve announced on Monday the Chicago Fed national activity index (CFNAI), a weighted average of 85 different economic indicators, came in at 0.79 in August, down from an upwardly revised 2.54 in July (originally 1.18), pointing to slower growth in economic activity than in July but still above average. That was the lowest reading since a sharp decline in April.

Economists had forecast the index to come in at 1.95 in August.

At the same time, the index’s three-month moving average fell to +3.05 in August from +4.23 in July.

According to the report, two of the four broad categories of indicators used to construct the index made positive contributions in August, but all four categories dropped from July.

Production-related indicators made a positive contribution of +0.23 to the CFNAI in August, down from +1.26 in July. Employment-related indicators contributed +0.63 to the CFNAI in August, down slightly from +0.65 in July. Meanwhile, the contribution of the sales, orders, and inventories category to the CFNAI decreased to -0.04 in August from +0.53 in July. The contribution of the personal consumption and housing category to the CFNAI worsened -0.04 in August from +0.09 in July.