Leading Recovery

Friday, December 27, 2002

The U.S. leading index rose 0.7 percent in November, the largest gain since last December, according to the Conference Board, a New York–based research firm. The increase puts the index nearly 3.6 percent above the most recent low point in March 2001. Leading indicators include stock prices, interest rate spread, average weekly new unemployment claims, consumer expectations, new manufacturing orders and average weekly manufacturing hours.