Chicago Business Barometer™ - Fell To 36.3 In November

The Chicago Business Barometer™, produced with MNI, fell 7.5 points to 36.3 in November. The index is below 40 for the first time since January, and has remained below 50 for twenty-four consecutive months.

The decrease was driven by declines in Order Backlogs, New Orders, Production and Employment. An increase in Supplier Deliveries provided a small offset.

ORDER BACKLOGS DROP TO LOWEST SINCE MARCH '09

Order Backlogs slipped 21.5 points, now at its lowest level since March 2009 and below 30 for the first time since June this year.

NEW ORDERS AT WEAKEST THIS YEAR

New Orders dropped 12.0 points, the largest one-month fall since September 2023. The index is now at its lowest level since December 2024.

PRODUCTION UNWINDS OCTOBER'S RISE

Production slowed 4.7 points, more than reversing October’s rise. The index has remained below 50 for 21 of the last 23 months.

Supplier Deliveries grew 7.4 points to the highest level since last December. No respondents reported faster Supplier Deliveries in November.

Employment softened 4.5 points to the lowest level since May 2009. No respondents reported larger employment levels in November.

Inventories declined 9.8 points, almost fully unwinding October’s increase.

Prices Paid rose 5.8 points to the highest level in four months.

The survey ran from November 1 to November 18.