R.I. economic indicators increase 0.4% in Oct., slower than in Sept.

PROVIDENCE – An index of Rhode Island’s leading economic indicators rose 0.4 percent in October, after advancing 0.6 percent in September, according to the report from Providence Business News/e-forecasting.com.

September’s increase was adjusted from the 0.5 percent that was originally reported. This was the third consecutive month in which the percentage gain did not surpass the previous month’s numbers.

A reading of 100 on the Providence Business News/e-forecasting.com Leading Economic Indicator Index is equivalent to the state’s activity in 2000. October’s overall reading was 129.5.
The index uses nine statistics to forecast the direction of the state’s economy over the next three to six months. Positive numbers signal growth while negative numbers denote contraction.
Six of the nine components that make up the leading indicator index had a positive contribution: unemployment claims, building permits, exports of manufactures, regional consumer expectations, interest rate spread and national orders index. Three of the nine components had a negative contribution to Rhode Island’s leading indicator in October: weekly hours in manufacturing, national stock prices and state employment.

In October, Rhode Island’s six-month growth rate increased 5.8 percent, after an increase of the same amount in September. This compares to a long-term annual growth rate of 1.8 percent, the same as the annual growth rate of the state’s overall economic activity.

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