Chicago PMI Sample Index At Lowest Point In Four Years

It's often hot or cold for Chicago's PMI sample and October, likely due to the GM strike, was a very cold month, at 43.2 for the headline composite index and a 4-year low. And the leading indicator among the report's details, that is the new order index, is at a 10-year low and a very depressed score of 37.0. Backlogs, which are at a 4-year low and at an even more depressed 33.1, are fairing no better. But outside of orders, weakness is less severe with production at 46.8, inventories at 47.1, and input costs still on the rise at 54.8.

Order scores in the 30s are usually seen at times of economic crisis which this sample may be suffering from the GM strike which, however, has been tentatively settled in what might prove to be a major positive for November's report.