A Bright Spot in Leading Economic Indicators

Leading economic indicators offered a ray of hope today and also gave Wall Street a boost. Continuing unemployment claims fell by 148,000 to 6.69 million in the week to June 6, according to Reuters. Still, many are tempering their optimism. First time job claims rose by 3,000 this month. Also, a New York Times story suggests the drop in continuing jobless claims may have to do with the fact that benefits have expired for many.

But overall, the Conference Board's Leading Economic Index, which tracks leading economic indicators, rose by 1.2 percent in May. The Board mentioned contributors like "real money supply, consumer expectations, and building permits contributed positively to the index, more than offsetting the negative contributions from weekly hours and initial unemployment claims."

While this news does not necessarily mean we are in the clear, most agree that overall, the latest numbers are a positive sign.