Chicago PMI Suffers Longest ‘Contraction’ Streak Since Lehman

After a surprisingly strong rebound in December, Chicago PMI fell back in January to 44.3 (below expectations of 45.0), below ’50’ for the 5th straight month…

Source: Bloomberg

That is the longest streak of prints in ‘contraction’ since the Great Financial Crisis.

Under the hood, the business barometer fell at a faster pace; signaling contraction

• Prices paid rose at a faster pace; signaling expansion

• New orders fell at a faster pace; signaling contraction

• Employment fell at a faster pace; signaling contraction

• Inventories fell at a faster pace; signaling contraction

• Supplier deliveries rose at a faster pace; signaling expansion

• Production fell at a slower pace; signaling contraction

• Order backlogs fell and the direction reversed; signaling contraction

• Number of components rising vs last month: 3

This continues a trend of ‘soft’ survey data disappointing notably.