Leading Economic Index® for U.S. Increases in December

The Conference Board, a non-partisan, not-for-profit think tank founded in 1916, released today (1-21-22) the Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. in December. According to the report, the LEI for the U.S. increased by 0.8% in December to 120.8 (2016 = 100), following a 0.7% increase in November, a 0.7% increase in October, and a 0.3% increase in September.

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) for the U.S. increased by 0.2% in December to a reading of 106.7 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in November, a 0.5% increase in October and no change in September.

The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index® (LAG) for the U.S. increased by 0.1% in December to 109.4 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in November, a 0.4% percent increase in October, and a 0.9% increase in September.

In a statement prepared for the release of the December LEI, Ataman Ozyildirim, Senior Director of Economic Research at The Conference Board, said, “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.”