U.S. Leading Economic Index Rises Less Than Expected In March

(RTTNews) - The Conference Board released a report Friday morning showing a continued increase by its index of leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of March, although the index rose by less than economists had expected.

The report said the leading economic index increased by 0.2 percent in March following a downwardly revised 0.1 percent uptick in February.

Economists had been expecting the index to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.2 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.

Ataman Ozyildirim, an economist at the Conference Board, said, "Although the leading economic index still points to a moderate expansion in economic activity, its slowing growth rate over recent months suggests weaker growth may be ahead."

"Building permits was the weakest component this month, but average working hours and manufacturing new orders have also slowed the LEI's growth over the last six months," he added.

The modest increase by the leading index reflected positive contributions from six of the ten indicators, including average weekly jobless claims, the interest rate spread, and average consumer expectations for business conditions.

The Conference Board also said its coincident economic index inched up by 0.1 percent in March after rising by 0.2 percent in February.

Positive contributions from personal income less transfer payments, employees on non-farm payrolls, and manufacturing and trade sales contributed to the uptick by the index.

Additionally, the report said the lagging economic index climbed by 0.4 percent in March following a 0.3 percent increase in February.

The increase reflected positive contributions from the average duration of unemployment, commercial and industrial loans outstanding, the change in unit labor costs and the ratio of consumer installment credit outstanding to personal income.