DALLAS, Dec. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica Bank's
California Economic Activity Index dropped in September, falling
two points to a level of 100. September's reading is six
percent above the index cyclical low of 94. Year-to-date the
index has averaged 102, two points below the 104 average for all of
2010.
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"The California economy
continues to struggle for traction, shown by the slide in our
California Index through 2011," said Robert
Dye, Chief Economist at Comerica Bank. "Slow-to-moderate job
growth this year has helped to broaden the state's economic base.
However, the state has a long way to go before it regains its
pre-recession peak employment. California's unemployment rate of 11.7 percent
in October was higher than any other state except Nevada. Silicon Valley is hiring aggressively
but that has little impact on the state's large base of lower
skilled workers. Housing market activity remains very weak in many
areas and represents a large and fundamental drag on the state's
economy. Manufacturing activity for high tech firms is starting to
cool after a strong rebound through 2010."
The California Economic Activity Index equally weighs nine,
seasonally-adjusted coincident indicators of real economic
activity. These indicators reflect activity in the
manufacturing, travel and trade sectors, as well as job growth and
consumer outlays. The Index levels represent a three-month
moving average, used to smooth monthly volatility. The Index
is benchmarked so that 2008 equals 100.
Comerica Bank, with 104 banking centers in the key California markets of San Francisco and the East Bay, San Jose, Los
Angeles, Orange County,
San Diego, Fresno, Sacramento, Santa
Cruz/Monterey, and the
Inland Empire, is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:
CMA). Comerica is a financial services company headquartered
in Dallas, Texas, and
strategically aligned into three major business segments: the
Business Bank, the Retail Bank, and Wealth Management. Comerica
focuses on relationships and helping businesses and people be
successful.
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SOURCE Comerica Bank