Forex Fundamentals - Mixed US Data. Leading Indicators down in December. U-Michigan Confidence Survey rises.

January 18, 2008 - Forex Economic News

The U.S. Leading Indicators Index published by the Conference Board was released today and showed a decrease for December. The Leading Indicator Index, a measure of future economic activity, registered a 0.2 percent decrease for December following a decrease of 0.4 percent in November. This was the third straight monthly decline and the fourth decline out of the last six months. Building permit weakness was the largest drag on the index. The coincident index, which is viewed as a measure of the current economic activity, increased by 0.1 percent in December and has gained 0.7 percent from June 2007 to December. The report highlighted that the leading index "has weakened sharply since mid-2007" and shows "increasing risks for further economic weakness" in the near term. Read the report here.

In positive U.S. economic news, the University of Michigan consumer confidence survey posted positive numbers today for the first time since July. The consumer sentiment survey report released by UMichigan/Reuters rose to an 80.5 score in January, up from 75.5 in December. The expectations index, which measures future economic sentiment, increased from 65.6 in December to 69.1 in January while the current conditions index jumped from 91.0 in December to 98.1 in January. Consumer expectations on inflation remained unchanged since December at 3.4 percent.

Tags: Consumer Confidence, US Leading Indicators, Conference Board, University of Michigan Survey, coincident index, building permits------------------------ Blog index