A broad range of economic indicators paints a picture of an improving economy, according to the latest ""Conference Board"":http://www.conference-board.org/ Leading Economic Index released Thursday.
[IMAGE]The Conference Board, a global research firm and business association, observes 10 economic indicators, which combined create the Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI).
Those indicators include measures such as orders for manufactured goods, average weekly manufacturing hours, unemployment claims, building permits, and composite stock prices.
The LEI increased 0.6 percent in July, reaching 96 for the month. An index score of 100 reflects the economic conditions in 2004.
[COLUMN_BREAK]""The improvement in the LEI, and pick up in the six-month growth rate, suggest better economic and job growth in the second half of 2013,"" said Ken Goldstein, a Conference Board economist.
""However, the biggest uncertainties remain the pace of business spending and the impact of slower global growth on U.S. exports,"" he added.
The worst-performing indicator in the index was workweek manufacturing, according to Ataman Ozildirim, another economist at The Conference Board.
However, overall, the economy is improving, according to the Conference Board. ""The pace of the LEI's growth over the last six months has nearly doubled, pointing to a gradually strengthening expansion through the end of the year.""
In addition to the LEI, the Conference Board also released the results of its Coincident Economic Index and its Lagging Economic Index.
The Coincident Index increased 0.2 percent in July to 106.3, while the Lagging Economic Index declined 0.2 percent. However, despite the Lagging Economic Index's decline, it held the highest index score--118.2--for the month of July.