Global supply chains have "returned to normal," the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said March 6, with pressures dropping to the lowest since before the COVID-19 pandemic threw a wrench into procurement networks worldwide and created shortages for everything from microchips to motor vehicles.
In a development that could also point to softening inflation, the New York Fed said its monthly Global Supply Chain Index fell to a reading of negative 0.26 in February, down from a revised 0.94 seen in January.
The negative turn for February---which indicates pressures are below the index's historic norm dating from 1998---was the first since August 2019.
