Chicago Fed National Activity Index increases to +0.16 in February

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 +0.16 in February, up from a revised -0.33 in January (originally -0.25), pointing to an uptick in economic growth. That was the highest level since November 2019.

At the same time, the index's three-month moving average fell to -0.21 in February from -0.11 in January.

According to the report, two of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index rose from January, and three of the four categories made positive contributions to the index in February.

Production-related indicators made a positive contribution of +0.11 to the CFNAI in February, up from -0.34 in January. Employment-related indicators contributed +0.05 to the CFNAI in February, up from +0.01 in January. Meanwhile, the contribution of the sales, orders, and inventories category to the CFNAI ticked down to -0.03 in February from -0.02 in January. The contribution of the personal consumption and housing category to the CFNAI edged down to +0.02 in February from +0.03 in January.