Leading indicators show continued economic growth
The Conference Board's report of Leading Economic Indicators (LEI), which forecasts where the nation's economy is headed, increased 0.3 percent in June, marking the fifth straight month of gains.
Although June saw a slightly lower rise than some experts polled by Reuters had predicted, the board said that six of the 10 leading indicators saw growth, supporting a belief of stronger growth in the second half of the year.
"Broad-based increases in the LEI over the last six months signal an economy that is expanding in the near term and may even somewhat accelerate in the second half,'' said Ataman Ozyildirim, an economist at the Conference Board, in a statement. "Housing permits, the weakest indicator during this period, reflects some risk to this improving outlook. But favorable financial conditions, generally positive trends in the labor markets and the outlook for new orders in manufacturing have offset the housing market weakness over the past six months.''
The Conference Board’s measure of current economic activity also moved upward in June. The index rose 1.3 percent (about a 2.6-percent annual rate) between December 2013 and June 2014, slightly faster than the growth of 1 percent (or, a 2.1-percent annual rate) for the previous six months.
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