The composite index of leading economic indicators gained 1.1% in December, its ninth straight gain, the Conference Board reported yesterday.
LEI increased a revised 1.0% in November, originally reported as a 0.9% increase.
The coincident index was up 0.1% in December after a revised 0.1% rise in November, which was originally reported as a 0.2% gain.
Meanwhile, the lagging index fell 0.2% after a revised 0.5% decline in November, which was originally reported as a 0.4% drop.
Economists polled by Thomson Reuters predicted LEI would be up 0.7% in the month.
“The indicators point to an economy in early recovery,” board economist Ken Goldstein said in a statement.
“The coincident economic index shows slow expansion of economic activity through December. The leading economic index suggests that the pace of improvement could pick up this spring.”