Chicago Fed National Activity Index

A monthly economic report prepared by the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank that tracks economic activity in the 7th district, which is comprised of Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The Chicago Fed National Activity Index is a coincident indicator of broad economic activity that is a weighted average of 85 indicators based on economic data covering production and income, employment, personal consumption, housing, manufacturing, trade sales, inventories, and orders. It is useful in tracking economic growth and identifying potential inflation. An index value of 0 indicates that the economy is growing at its long-run potential; a value over 0 indicates that the economy is growing above its potential. A negative value indicates that the economy is growing below potential. The data has a lag of about one month. It is a relatively new report that has not yet gained a following in the financial markets.