The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for the U.S. Increased in August

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The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for theU.S. increased 0.4% in August to 128.8 (2010 = 100), following a 0.3% increase in July, and a 0.6% increase in June.

“The August gain is consistent with continuing growth in the U.S. economy for the second half of the year, which may even see a moderate pick up,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Business Cycles and Growth Research at The Conference Board. “While the economic impact of recent hurricanes is not fully reflected in the leading indicators yet, the underlying trends suggest that the current solid pace of growth should continue in the near term.”

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for the U.S. was unchanged in August, remaining at 115.8 (2010 = 100), following a 0.3% increase in July, and a 0.1% increase in June.  

The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index (LAG) for the U.S. increased 0.3% in August to 125.2 (2010 = 100), following a 0.2% increase in July and a 0.2% increase in June.

About The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the U.S.

The composite economic indexes are the key elements in an analytic system designed to signal peaks and troughs in the business cycle. The leading, coincident, and lagging economic indexes are essentially composite averages of several individual leading, coincident, or lagging indicators. They are constructed to summarize and reveal common turning point patterns in economic data in a clearer and more convincing manner than any individual component – primarily because they smooth out some of the volatility of individual components.