Survey Methodology

Purchasing Manager Index Survey Methodology

On the first business day of every month, the Survey on Economic Conditions for Business in the Mid-American and Mountain States is released by Creighton University, Omaha, NE. Dr. Ernest Goss of Creighton University uses the same methodology used for the NAPM Report on Business which is released every month by the National Association of Purchasing Management (NAPM). The National Association of Purchasing Management began in 1931 to formally survey its membership to gauge business conditions.

The overall index ranges between 0 percent and 100 percent, and an index number greater than 50 percent indicates an expansionary economy, and an index under 50 percent forecasts a sluggish economy, for the next three to six months.

The states included in the Mid-American states are: Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

The states included in the Mountain States are: Colorado, Utah, Wyoming.