DALLAS, April 29, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica
Bank's California Economic Activity Index held flat in February,
maintaining a level of 119.4. February's reading is 36 points, or
42 percent, above the index cyclical low of 83.8. The index
averaged 113.7 points for all of 2014, seven and one-half points
above the average for all of 2013. January's index reading was
119.4.
"Our California Economic Activity Index was unchanged in
February. State exports have been a drag on the index for four
consecutive months as a labor dispute slowed port activity. While
the dockworkers' dispute has been resolved, truckers who service
the ports have recently authorized a strike, threatening to extend
shipping delays. Still, job growth in California has been steady, and our California
Index shows only one decline in the last 27 months," said
Robert Dye, Chief Economist at
Comerica Bank. "The chronic water shortage for much of the state is
a potentially limiting factor for business activity. Agricultural
businesses are making adjustments, but non-agricultural industries
are also facing limits as the state grapples with a call by
Governor Brown for a 25 percent reduction in water usage."
The California Economic Activity Index consists of eight
variables, as follows: nonfarm payrolls, exports, hotel occupancy
rates, continuing claims for unemployment insurance, housing
starts, national defense spending, home prices, and the
NASDAQ-100-Technology Sector Index (NDXT). All data are seasonally
adjusted, as necessary, and indexed to a base year of 2008. Nominal
values have been converted to constant dollar values. Index levels
are expressed in terms of three-month moving averages.
Comerica Bank, with 104 banking centers in the key California markets of San Francisco and the East Bay, San Jose, Los
Angeles, Orange County,
San Diego, Fresno, Sacramento, Santa
Cruz/Monterey, and the
Inland Empire, is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:
CMA). Comerica is a financial services company headquartered in
Dallas, Texas, and strategically
aligned into three major business segments: the Business Bank, the
Retail Bank, and Wealth Management. Comerica focuses on
relationships and helping businesses and people be successful. To
find Comerica on Facebook, please visit
www.facebook.com/ComericaCares.
To subscribe to our publications or for questions, contact us at
ComericaEcon@comerica.com. Archives are available at
http://www.comerica.com/economics. Follow us on Twitter:
@Comerica_Econ.
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SOURCE Comerica Bank