December
Missouri’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for December was 67.2, decreasing 8.4 points from November, but still well in expansion territory, according to the monthly Mid-America Business Conditions Survey, conducted by Creighton University, Omaha, NE.
For the eighth straight month, the Creighton University Mid-America Business Conditions Index, a leading economic indicator for the nine-state region stretching from Minnesota to Arkansas, advanced above growth neutral, and to its highest level since 2004. 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. The US December PMI® for manufacturing registered 60.7, increasing 3.2 points from the November reading of 57.5 percent.
Note: The national purchasing manager's indices are produced by the Institute for Supply Management, formerly the Purchasing Management Association.