Missouri’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) increased by 1.9 points in April. The state’s PMI score increased to 49.7 from 47.8 in March, according to the monthly Mid-American Business Conditions Survey, conducted by Creighton University, Omaha, NE.
Economists consider the index, which measures such factors as new orders, production, supplier delivery times, backlogs, inventories, prices, employment, import orders and exports, a key economic indicator. Typically, a score greater than 50 indicates an expansionary economy, while a score below 50 forecasts a sluggish economy for the next three to six months.
The national PMI for manufacturing industries was essentially unchanged in April. Nevertheless, factory activity is weak, with the index coming in at 48.6 in April, identical to March report. Although it is encouraging that the index didn’t substantially deteriorate, it has remained below the neutral threshold of 50 for three consecutive months. Production and inventories all increased over the month. New orders declined for the month. Inventories were above the 50.0 level. The nation’s PMI for non-manufacturing business activity index moderately increased in April to 52.0. The business activity index indicated an expansion, however; this index rose to 50.9 a decrease of 1.3 percentage points over the month.
Missouri’s April score showed increases for the month in production (54.5). New orders (48.7) and Employment (46.8) both declined for the month. Other states in the survey include North Dakota (64.6), Iowa (60.5), Arkansas (58.5), Minnesota (55.1), Kansas (55.0), Nebraska (51.0), South Dakota (53.9) and Oklahoma (53.4).
Overall, the average for the Mid-America Region increased in April to 55.5 from 54.3 in March.
Note: The national purchasing manager's indices are produced by
the Institute for Supply Management, formerly the Purchasing
Management Association.
