Financial News: U.S. Leading Economic Index Falls 0.3% In September

U.S. Leading Economic Index Falls 0.3% In September

(RTTNews) - A report released by the Conference Board on Tuesday showed a continued decrease by its reading on leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of September.

The Conference Board said its leading economic index fell by 0.3 percent in September, matching an upwardly revised dip in August.

"The US LEI fell again in September, marking a second consecutive decline," said Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, Senior Manager, Business Cycle Indicators, at The Conference Board. "Weakening expectations from consumers and businesses led the overall contraction in the Index."

Zabinska-La Monica said consumer expectations and the ISM New Orders Index contributed negatively to the LEI, followed by manufacturers' new orders of consumer goods and materials, initial jobless claims and the yield curve.

Meanwhile, stock prices, the Leading Credit Index, and manufacturers' new orders of non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft contributed positively to the headline index, she said.

The Conference Board said the leading economic index slumped by 2.1 percent over the six months between March and September 2025, a faster rate of decline than its 1.3 percent contraction over the previous six-month period.

"The LEI suggests slowing economic activity at the end of 2025 and into early 2026, with GDP weakening after strong mid-year consumer spending and Q4 disruptions amid the federal government shutdown," said Zabinska-La Monica.

The report also said the coincident economic index crept up by 0.1 percent in September after coming in unchanged in August.

The lagging economic index also inched up by 0.1 percent in September, matching the uptick seen in the previous month.

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