The Conference Board released their latest Leading Economic Index (LEI), which takes a broad look at the economy and tracks where it’s heading in the near term. October brought a 0.4% drop, which followed September’s 0.3% decline. The biggest negative contributor last month was the weak manufacturing sector.
What’s the bottom line? The LEI has trended negative in recent years, with Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, Senior Manager, Business Cycle Indicators, noting that “apart from possible temporary impacts of hurricanes, the US LEI continued to suggest challenges to economic activity ahead.”