Chicago Fed National Activity Index Falls Back to a Negative Reading in March
Summary
- CFNAI -0.03 in March vs. +0.24 in February.
- Two of four CFNAI components fall m/m and three make negative contributions.
- Personal Consumption & Housing index rises to the highest since Jan. ’23.
- CFNAI-MA3 declines to -0.01, the first negative reading since Dec.; still above -0.70 (recession signal).
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) was at -0.03 in March, down from +0.24 in February (+0.18 initially) and up from -0.26 in January (-0.08 previously), today’s report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago showed, indicating U.S. economic growth decreased for the month. The March CFNAI registered the second negative reading in three months and the eighth negative in 10 months; it was up from -0.20 in March 2024 but below a high of +0.38 in February 2024.
The index's three-month moving average (CFNAI-MA3), which smooths out the m/m volatility in the index, dropped to -0.01 in March after rising to +0.12 in February (+0.15 initially), posting the first negative reading since December; nevertheless, it was an improvement from -0.21 in March 2024. The CFNAI-MA3 is expressed in standard deviation units from zero (with a value of zero defined as trend real GDP growth). Research at the Chicago Fed indicates that an average reading of -0.70 or below is consistent with the economy being in a recession. Thus, the March reading suggests that the U.S. economy is not currently in a recession.
The March negative reading reflected m/m drops in two of the four CFNAI key components and three negative contributions. The contribution of the Production & Income index decreased to -0.09 in March from +0.25 in February; however, it was up from -0.10 in March 2024 and a low of -0.59 in December 2022. The contribution of the Sales, Orders & Inventories index fell to -0.03 in March from +0.01 in February, but it was up from -0.05 in March 2024 and a low of -0.23 in January 2024. The Employment, Unemployment & Hours index contributed -0.01 in March, slightly up from -0.02 in February and improved from -0.04 in March 2024. Meanwhile, the contribution of the Personal Consumption & Housing index to the CFNAI rose to +0.11 in March, the highest reading since January 2023, after rebounding to a neutral value (0.00) in February; it was also up from -0.01 in March 2024.
The CFNAI Diffusion Index, which measures the breadth of change in the component series and is also a three-month moving average, fell to -0.01 in March after posting +0.12 in February (+0.16 initially) and +0.07 in January (+0.08 previously) and a string of negative readings from March 2023 to December 2024. A reading of zero indicates that all of the indicators are growing at their long-term average. The March reading was up from -0.18 in March 2024 and a low of -0.35 in October 2023; however, having remained below a high of +0.25 in September 2022.
The CFNAI is a weighted average of 85 indicators of national economic activity. It is constructed to have an average value of zero and a standard deviation of one. Since economic activity tends toward trend growth rate over time, a positive index reading corresponds to growth above trend and a negative index reading corresponds to growth below trend.
These figures are available in Haver's SURVEYS database.
Winnie Tapasanun
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Winnie Tapasanun has been working for Haver Analytics since 2013. She has 20+ years of working in the financial services industry. As Vice President and Economic Analyst at Globicus International, Inc., a New York-based company specializing in macroeconomics and financial markets, Winnie oversaw the company’s business operations, managed financial and economic data, and wrote daily reports on macroeconomics and financial markets. Prior to working at Globicus, she was Investment Promotion Officer at the New York Office of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) where she wrote monthly reports on the U.S. economic outlook, wrote reports on the outlook of key U.S. industries, and assisted investors on doing business and investment in Thailand. Prior to joining the BOI, she was Adjunct Professor teaching International Political Economy/International Relations at the City College of New York. Prior to her teaching experience at the CCNY, Winnie successfully completed internships at the United Nations. Winnie holds an MA Degree from Long Island University, New York. She also did graduate studies at Columbia University in the City of New York and doctoral requirements at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Her areas of specialization are international political economy, macroeconomics, financial markets, political economy, international relations, and business development/business strategy. Her regional specialization includes, but not limited to, Southeast Asia and East Asia. Winnie is bilingual in English and Thai with competency in French. She loves to travel (~30 countries) to better understand each country’s unique economy, fascinating culture and people as well as the global economy as a whole.
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