The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the U.S. increased by 0.8 percent in December to 120.8 (2016 = 100), following a 0.7 percent increase in November and a 0.7 percent increase in October.
“The U.S. LEI ended 2021 on a rising trajectory, suggesting the economy will continue to expand well into the spring,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Senior Director of Economic Research at The Conference Board. “For the first quarter, headwinds from the Omicron variant, labor shortages, and inflationary pressures—as well as the Federal Reserve’s expected interest rate hikes—may moderate economic growth. The Conference Board forecasts GDP growth for Q1 2022 to slow to a relatively healthy 2.2 percent (annualized). Still, for all of 2022, we forecast the US economy will expand by a robust 3.5 percent—well above the pre-pandemic trend growth.”
The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for the U.S. increased by 0.2 percent in December to 107.4 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1 percent increase in November and a 0.5 percent increase in October.
The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index (LAG) for the U.S. increased by 0.1 percent in December to 109.4 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1 percent increase in November and a 0.4 percent increase in October.
