U.S. Leading Economic Index Increased in August -- Conference Board
September 23 2021 - 10:41AM
Dow Jones News
By Xavier Fontdegloria
An economic index that measures U.S. business cycles rose in
August at a slightly quicker pace than in July, data from The
Conference Board showed Thursday.
The Leading Economic index came in at 117.1 in August, up 0.9%
compared with the previous month. The rise beats the expectations
from economists polled by The Wall Street Journal, who expected a
0.7% increase.
In July, the index increased by 0.8% on month, less than the
0.9% rise previously estimated. The indicator is well above
pre-pandemic levels.
"While the Delta variant--alongside rising inflation
fears--could create headwinds for labor markets and the consumer
spending outlook in the near term, the trend in the LEI is
consistent with robust economic growth in the reminder of the
year," Conference Board Senior Director of Economic Research Ataman
Ozyildirim said.
The Conference Board Leading Economic Index is based on 10
components, among them initial claims for unemployment insurance,
manufacturers' new orders, building permits of new private housing
units, stock prices and consumers expectations. It is intended to
signal swings in the business cycle and to smooth out some of the
volatility of individual indicators.
Real gross domestic product growth for 2021 is expected to reach
nearly 6.0%, before easing to 4.0% in 2022, Mr. Ozyildirim
said.
The Coincident Economic Index rose 0.2% in August to 105.9,
while the Lagging Economic Index edged up 0.1% in August to 106.3,
the report said.
Write to Xavier Fontdegloria at xavier.fontdegloria@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 23, 2021 10:26 ET (14:26 GMT)
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