DALLAS, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica Bank's
California Economic Activity Index grew by 1.0 percentage points in
August to a level of 122.7. August's reading is 39 points, or 46
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. July's index reading was 121.7.
"Our California Economic Activity Index increased again in
August, its sixth consecutive monthly gain after stalling over the
year from March 2015 through
March 2016. During the stall, the
NASDAQ 100 Technology Stock index dipped, defense spending eased
and housing starts retrenched. These negative forces were roughly
balanced by improving labor metrics, especially ongoing payroll job
creation. Over the last six months, tech stocks have performed
better, defense spending has stabilized and housing starts have
gained some momentum. In August, six out of eight index components
were positive including payroll employment, state exports, housing
starts, defense spending, house price index and the tech stock
index. Only initial claims for unemployment insurance (inverted)
and hotel occupancy dipped for the month," said Robert Dye, Chief Economist at Comerica Bank.
"Even though we are seeing anecdotal reports of the northern
California real estate market
cooling, the Case-Shiller house price index for San Francisco increased by 1.0 percent in
August."
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