Economy

Chicago Business Barometer Rebounds, But Firms Remain Worried
Written by Sandy Williams
July 31, 2020
A spike in business activity was recorded by the Chicago Business Barometer in July. The index rebounded from 12 months of contraction to a reading of 51.9.
Increasing demand resulted in a vault of 23.8 points for the new orders index to its highest level since August 2019. Production soared 49.5 percent and back into expansion territory. The future outlook remained uncertain for participating firms, however, due to the ongoing pandemic.
Order backlogs remained in contraction with a gain of 15.3 points in July. Inventories gained 6.9 points after a steep decline in June. The supplier deliveries index fell 6.4 points to its lowest reading since January and prices paid reached a seven-month high.
Although employment gained 26 percent, survey participants mentioned continued layoffs due to the coronavirus and difficulties finding new staff.
A potential second wave of COVID-19 has 51.3 percent of companies making contingency plans. The majority of firms, 65 percent, said they expect growth for the balance of the year to be below 5 percent.
Below is a graph showing the history of the Chicago Business Barometer. You will need to view the graph on our website to use its interactive features; you can do so by clicking here. If you need assistance logging in to or navigating the website, please contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.

Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Economy

Steel groups welcome passage of budget bill
Steel trade groups praised the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) in Congress on Thursday.

Industry groups praise Senate for passing tax and budget bill
The Steel Manufacturers Association and the American Iron and Steel Institute applauded the tax provisions included in the Senate's tax and budget reconciliation bill.

Chicago PMI dips 0.1 points in June
The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) slipped 0.1 points to 40.4 points, in June.

Multi-family pullback drives housing starts to 5-year low in May
US housing starts tumbled in May to a five-year low, according to figures recently released by the US Census Bureau.

Architecture firms still struggling, ABI data shows
Architecture firms reported a modest improvement in billings through May, yet business conditions remained soft, according to the latest Architecture Billings Index (ABI) release from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Deltek.