DALLAS, July 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica
Bank's California Economic Activity Index improved by 0.1
percentage points in May to a level of 120.6. May's reading is 37
points, or 43 percent, above the index cyclical low of 84.1. The
index averaged 119.8 points for all of 2015, six and two-fifths
points above the average for all of 2014. April's index reading was
120.5.
"The Comerica Bank California Economic Activity Index improved
again in May after gaining in April. The California Index is still
caught in the range established since mid-2015. Recent improvements
in technology stock prices will help lift the index as we report
mid-year results. Job growth for the state has been choppy on a
month-to-month basis, but still remains stronger than the U.S.
average over the previous year. House prices in San Francisco dipped in April and May, and are
now showing a 6.5 percent gain over the past year. This is well
down from the near 25 percent year-over-year gains reported in
mid-to-late 2013," said Robert Dye,
Chief Economist at Comerica Bank. "We expect to see slower house
price appreciation in Northern
California through the remainder of this year."
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 102 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 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