Report: No quick end for 'sluggish' economy

The index of leading indicators decreased by 0.2% in December, according to a report by The Conference Board, a New York based nonprofit. The index of leading indicators is a compilation of several factors designed to predict the strength of the U.S. economy, such as building permits and work orders. “Taken together, the recent behavior of the composite indexes highlights increasing risks for further economic weakness, and suggest that economic activity is likely to be sluggish in the short term,” according to a statement released in conjunction with the report. Of the ten indicators that constitute the index of leading indicators, four were positive. These were: vendor performance, real money supply, stock prices and manufacturers’ new orders for consumer goods. The rest performed negatively. They were: building permits, manufacturers’ new orders on capital goods, average weekly manufacturing hours, average weekly claims for unemployment insurance, consumer expectations, and the interest rate spread. The index of coincident indicators, which focuses on present trends in the economy, increased modestly in December. Of the four indicators measured by the index, three performed positively; personal income less transfer payments, manufacturing and trade sales, and employees on non-agricultural payrolls. The only negative indicator was industrial production.