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9:46 AM ET, May 31, 2007 - 40 minutes ago
U.S. May Chicago PMI 61.7% vs 54.0% expected

ECONOMIC REPORT; Chicago business-activity index picks up in May
By Greg Robb, MarketWatch Last Update: 10:23 AM ET May 31, 2007

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Business activity in the Chicago region improved in May, according to a survey of corporate purchasing managers released Thursday.
The Chicago purchasing-managers' index rose to 61.7% in May from 52.9% in April, the Chicago NAPM reported.
The size of the gain surprised analysts. Economists were expecting the Chicago PMI index to inch higher to 54.0%.
Readings over 50% indicate that more firms were expanding than contracting. The report seems to dovetail with recent data that point to a modest recovery in manufacturing after a slow patch in the first quarter.
Just how slow things were in the first quarter was revealed earlier on Thursday when the government revised down its estimate of first quarter growth to a paltry 0.6%, the slowest pace in four years.
The Chicago PMI has been of interest chiefly because it was seen to provide hints as to the movement in the national Institute of Supply Management index, which will be released on Friday. But economists say the Chicago report has provided little information about the national index in the last few years.
Before the Chicago index was released, economists are looking for the ISM to slip to 53.5% in May, after surging to 54.7% in April.
In the Chicago report, the new orders index rose to 71.1% from 56.5% in the previous month. Production jumped to 69.8% from 62.2% in April. This was the highest level of production since April 2005.
The employment index rose to 57.3% from 50.5%. The prices paid index rose to 70.2 from 64.9% in April.
The Chicago index covers all types of firms, not just manufacturers.