US: Chicago Fed National Activity Index drops to -0.35 from 0.41

• Chicago Fed's National Activity Index drops into negative territory in December.
• US Dollar Index continues to fluctuate in tight range above 97.50.

The economic growth in the US slowed down in December with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's National Activity Index (CFNAI) dropping to -0.35 from 0.41 in November. This reading came in slightly worse than the market expectation of -0.3 as well.

"The CFNAI Diffusion Index, which is also a three-month moving average, edged down to –0.27 in December from –0.25 in November," Chicago Fed noted in its publication. "Twenty-five of the 85 individual indicators made positive contributions to the CFNAI in December, while 60 made negative contributions." 

Market implications

The US Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of six major currencies, largely ignored this data and was last down 0.08% on the day at 97.54.