The Conference Board released a report on Tuesday showing its reading on leading U.S. economic indicators fell by slightly more than expected in the month of January.
The report said the Conference Board’s leading economic index fell by 0.4 percent in January after dipping by a revised 0.2 percent in December.
Economists had expected the index to decrease by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.1 percent dip originally reported for the previous month.
“The U.S. LEI fell further in January, as weekly hours worked in manufacturing continued to decline and the yield spread remained negative,” said Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, Senior Manager, Business Cycle Indicators, at The Conference Board.
“While the declining LEI continues to signal headwinds to economic activity, for the first time in the past two years, six out of its ten components were positive contributors over the past six-month period (ending in January 2024),” she added. “As a result, the leading index currently does not signal recession ahead.”
The Conference Board said the leading economic index contracted by 3.0 percent over the six-month period between July 2023 and January 2024, a smaller decrease than the 4.1 percent decline over the previous six months.
Meanwhile, the report said the coincident economic index rose by 0.2 percent in January, matching the uptick seen in December.
The lagging economic index also increased by 0.4 percent in January, rebounding following a 0.4 percent decline in the previous month.
Copyright © 2024, RTTNews.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
