CHICAGO—A measure of the U.S. economy from the Chicago Federal Reserve steadied in August, due to a modest ramping up of output at the nation’s factories compared to earlier in the summer. The Chicago Fed’s index of national economic activity registered at a positive 0.18 last month, unchanged from a slightly upwardly revised July reading.
The volatile nature of the monthly reading puts added emphasis on following the index’s less-volatile, three-month moving average. It rose to positive 0.24 in August from a downwardly revised positive 0.02 in July.