The Conference Board LEI for the U.S. Increased in September

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The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI)for theU.S. increased 0.5% in September to 111.8 (2016 = 100), following a 0.4% increase in August, and a 0.7% increase in July.

“The US LEI improved further in September, suggesting the US business cycle remains on a strong growth trajectory heading into 2019. However, the LEI’s growth has slowed somewhat in recent months, suggesting the economy may be facing capacity constraints and increasingly tight labor markets,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director and Global Research Chair at The Conference Board. “Economic growth could exceed 3.5% in the second half of 2018, but, unless the momentum in housing, orders and stock prices accelerates, that pace is unlikely to be sustained in 2019.”

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for the U.S. increased 0.1% in September to 104.4 (2016 = 100), following a 0.3% increase in August, and a 0.1% increase in July. 

The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index (LAG) for the U.S. declined 0.1% in September to 105.3 (2016 = 100), following a 0.2% increase in August and a 0.2% decline in July.

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.