January Chicago PMI Tops Expectations

Chicago, IL, Jan. 20, 2015 -- The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index, a measure of economic activity, rose to 59.4 in January from 58.8 in December.

Economists were expecting a slight decrease to 57.5.

“Business activity was led by a modest advance in New Orders while Order Backlogs was the second largest contributor to the Barometer’s faster expansion,” MNI Chicago said.

“Production also increased between December and January following two consecutive falls.”