Wisconsin’s economic activity increased in April, landing it in the top spot among the five Midwest states covered by the Seventh Federal Reserve District.
Wisconsin and Michigan were the two bright spots in the Midwest Economy Index produced by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Wisconsin registered a 0.20 and Michigan came in at 0.19. Indiana was at 0, while Illinois was -0.03 and Iowa was at -0.11.
A zero value indicates the economy is growing at its historical trend rate. A positive value indicates above-average growth, while negative indicates below-average growth.
Wisconsin also made the largest jump from March to April, improving 0.07 while Michigan was flat. The region as a whole registered a 0.25, the same as March. Wisconsin’s gains were offset by drops in Iowa and Indiana. Illinois was up slightly.
Within each sector making up the index, Wisconsin made gains in the manufacturing, service, and consumer segments, while construction was flat. All four were in positive territory, led by manufacturing at 0.08.
The relative MEI, which measures growth against the current activity in the nation as a whole, also had good news for Wisconsin. The state was tied with Michigan at 0.29, with strong contributions from manufacturing at 0.10 and services at 0.11.
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