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

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The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.4% in March to 111.9 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in February, and no change in January.

“The US LEI picked up in March with labor markets, consumers’ outlook, and financial conditions making the largest contributions,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, director of Economic Research at The Conference Board. ”Despite the relatively large gain in March, the trend in the US LEI continues to moderate, suggesting that growth in the US economy is likely to decelerate toward its long term potential of about 2% by year end.”

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for the U.S. increased 0.1% in March to 105.8 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in February, and no change in January. 

The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index (LAG) for the U.S. increased 0.1% in March to 107.0 (2016 = 100), following no change in February, and a 0.6% increase in January.

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.