• U.S. Leading Indicators Advanced…A Bit – October 2012

---

“The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.2 percent in October to 96.0 (2004 = 100), following a 0.5 percent increase in September, and a 0.4 percent decline in August. ”Says Ataman Ozyildirim, economist at The Conference Board: ‘The U.S. LEI increased slightly in October, the second consecutive increase. The LEI still points to modestly expanding economic activity in the near term. Over the last six months, improvements in the residential construction and financial components of the LEI have offset weak consumer expectations, manufacturing new orders and labor market components. Meanwhile, the coincident economic index also increased slightly in October.’ ”Says Ken Goldstein, economist at The Conference Board: ‘Based on current trends, the economy will continue to expand modestly through the early months of 2013. Hurricane Sandy, which is not yet fully reflected in the LEI, will likely adversely affect consumer spending and home building in the short-term, but it’s too soon to gauge the net impact. In addition, the outcome of the fiscal cliff debates is another factor which could alter the outlook.’” Source: The Conference Board

---