by Calculated Risk on 10/31/2013 09:48:00 AM

From the Chicago ISM:

October 2013:

The October Chicago Business Barometer rose to 65.9 in October from 55.7 in September, led by double digit gains in New Orders, Production and Order Backlogs. October’s gain placed the Barometer at the highest level since March 2011 with companies seemingly unaffected by the government shutdown.

New Orders soared to their highest level in nine years, adding to two prior months of gains while Production expanded to its highest level since February 2011.

Order Backlogs leapt out of a contractionary phase to the highest since March 2011. In line with expansion in New Orders and Production, Employment rose to its highest since June 2013, but remained well below the level of New Orders and Production.

Commenting on the MNI Chicago Report, Philip Uglow, Chief Economist at MNI Indicators said, “The government might have shut down but Chicago area companies powered ahead in October as orders and production surged.”

“While it is a little surprising to see such a large rise in activity, the consistent increase in the Barometer over the past four months suggests the recovery is gaining traction,” he added.

This was well above the consensus estimate of 55.0.