Missouri PMI economic indicator reaches highest level since 1994

Missouri's Purchasing Managers Index reached its highest level in nearly a decade in March, thanks to strong scores in new orders, production and employment, according to an April 9 news release from the Missouri Department of Economic Development.

The March PMI score for Missouri was 67.9, a sharp increase from the February score of 60.5 and well above the national average for the month of 62.5. It is also considerably higher than one year ago when the PMI was 55.9.

This also marks the 26th consecutive month that the state's score has remained above the expansionary level of 50, offering another indication that Missouri's economy is rebounding and the manufacturing sector is stabilizing.

Missouri's highest scores were in new orders (76.4), production (75.5), and employment (60.3). The last time Missouri's overall PMI score was this high was October 1994, when it was 68.2.

Economists consider the Purchasing Managers Index, which measures such factors as new orders, production, supplier delivery times, backlogs, inventories, prices, employment, import orders and exports, a key indicator of economic conditions.

"We are excited by this latest data on Missouri's Purchasing Managers Index," said DED Director Kelvin L. Simmons. "Not only is our March score higher than it has been in almost a decade, it is 12 points higher than a year ago and five points greater than the national average. We have been seeing positive economic trends in our state for more than a year, and this is a further example of those trends."

Overall, for states in the mid-America region, the average score increased to 62 in January from 55.9 in December. Other states in the survey included Iowa (76.5), South Dakota (73.6), Kansas (71.2), North Dakota (70.9), Oklahoma (70.5), Arkansas (64.9), Nebraska (61.8) and Minnesota (61.6).

The Purchasing Managers' Index is part of a monthly Mid-American Business Conditions Survey, conducted by Creighton University in Omaha, Neb.