R.I. leading indicators slip .2% in February

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s leading economic indicator slipped .2 percent in February to a reading of 131.7, partly due to a decline in building permits, among other factors, according to the Providence Business News/e-forecasting.com Leading Economic Indicator Index.
A reading of 100 on the index is equal to the state’s activity in 2000.
This was the second month that the leading indicator declined. In January, it dropped by one-tenth of a percentage point, after figures were revised – a 0.3 percent increase was previously reported.
Four of the nine components that make up Rhode Island’s Leading Indicator had a positive contribution in February: unemployment claims, regional consumer expectations, national stock prices and interest rate spread.

Five of the nine components had a negative contribution to Rhode Island’s Leading Indicator in February: weekly hours in manufacturing, building permits, exports of manufactures, national orders index and state employment barometer.

Looking at its six-month growth rate, described as a signal of turning points, Rhode Island’s Leading Indicator rose by an annual rate of 3.1 percent in February, after an increase of 4.2 percent in January. This compares to a long-term annual growth rate of 1.9 percent, the same as the annual growth rate of the state’s overall economic activity, e-forecasting.com said.

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