Chicago Fed's national activity index rises to 0.15 in March

The Chicago Federal Reserve's national activity index rose to +0.15 in March, up from an upwardly revised reading of +0.09 for February and beating expectations for a +0.09 reading for the highest reading since November 2023.

Employment-related indicators rose to +0.04 from -0.01 in February, while the sales, orders, and inventories category made a neutral contribution, up from -0.05. Additionally, production-related indicators added +0.11, slightly lower than the +0.13 recorded a month earlier.

The contribution from the personal consumption and housing category slipped from +0.02 in February to -0.01 in March.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com