THE MIDWESTERN ECONOMY IMPROVED SLIGHTLY DURING JANUARY.
THAT’S ACCORDING TO THE LATEST CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY SURVEY FROM CREIGHTON ECONOMIST ERNIE GOSS.
GOSS SAYS IOWA’S ECONOMY CONTINUED TO STRUGGLE THOUGH. AND THAT SUPPLY MANAGERS ARE FEARFUL NEW TARIFFS WILL HURT BUSINESS.
IN ANTICIPATION, MANY FIRMS INCREASED INVENTORY LEVELS DURING JANUARY AND BOOSTED IMPORTS TO A RECORD HIGH.
FOR ONLY THE THIRD TIME SINCE LAST JULY, THAT HELPED THE OVERALL BUSINESS CONDITIONS INDEX CLIMB ABOVE GROWTH NEUTRAL.
ERNIE1 OC………”OUR SURVEY” :19
THE SURVEY IS BASED ON A ZERO-TO-100 SCALE, WITH 50 BEING GROWTH NEUTRAL.
FOR JANUARY, IOWA’S ECONOMY HIT A REGIONAL LOW OF 43.1, WHICH WAS UP FROM DECEMBER’S SCORE OF 40.8. STILL, GOSS SAYS MORE EMPLOYERS IN THE REGION ADDED TO THEIR WORKFORCES DURING THE MONTH.
ERNIE 2 OC……. “WE’VE BEEN SEEING” :21
FOR A FOURTH STRAIGHT MONTH, GOSS SAYS THE WHOLESALE PRICE INFLATION GAUGE ROSE, BUT IT CONTINUES TO INDICATE MODEST INFLATION.
BECAUSE OF THAT, HE EXPECTS THE FEDERAL RESERVE TO PAUSE ON ANY INTEREST RATE CHANGE AT ITS NEXT MEETING IN MID-MARCH.
DESPITE WEAK MANUFACTURING EMPLOYMENT READINGS OVER THE PAST YEAR, GOSS SAYS ABOUT ONE IN FIVE FIRMS REPORTED LABOR SHORTAGES.
ERNIE3 OC……..”ONE PERCENT” :14
ACCORDING TO THE LATEST U.S. INTERNATIONAL TRADE ADMINISTRATION DATA, IOWA EXPERIENCED A $1.5 BILLION DROP IN 2024 YEAR-TO-DATE MANUFACTURING EXPORTS COMPARED TO THE SAME PERIOD IN 2023 FOR A 9.6% DECLINE.
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