DALLAS, Jan. 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica Bank's
Texas Economic Activity Index advanced by 0.4 percentage points in
October to a level of 91.0. October's index reading is 18 points,
or 25 percent, above the index cyclical low of 72.8. The index
averaged 97.5 points for all of 2015, seven and one-half points
below the average for full-year 2014. September's index reading was
90.6.
"The Comerica Bank Texas Economic Activity Index improved again
in October, building on its September turn-around. Six out of eight
index components were positive in October. They were nonfarm
employment, state exports, unemployment insurance claims
(inverted), rig count, home prices and hotel occupancy. Housing
starts eased in October for the third consecutive month. State
sales tax revenue eased as well. Job growth appears to be
stabilizing for Texas, with gains
seen for the last eight consecutive months. Also, the rig count
continues to improve. As of the end of October, the Texas rig count had increased to 256 active
rigs, well above the May 2016 low of
173," said Robert Dye, Chief
Economist at Comerica Bank. "The recent oil production cuts
announced by Kuwait and
Oman suggest that the early days
of the OPEC production agreement have been successful and will
support higher crude oil prices. We expect Texas drilling activity to continue to
gradually improve through early 2017, contributing to a
strengthening state economy."
The Texas Economic Activity Index consists of eight variables,
as follows: nonfarm payrolls, exports, hotel occupancy rates,
continuing claims for unemployment insurance, housing starts, sales
tax revenues, home prices, and the Baker Hughes rotary rig count.
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 is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:
CMA), the largest U.S. commercial bank headquartered in
Texas, strategically aligned by
three business segments: The Business Bank, The Retail Bank, and
Wealth Management. Comerica focuses on relationships, and helping
people and businesses be successful. In addition to a local banking
center network throughout Dallas-Fort
Worth, Houston,
Austin, San Antonio and Kerrville, Texas, Comerica Bank locations can
be found in Arizona, California, Florida and Michigan, with select businesses operating in
several other states, as well as in Canada and Mexico.
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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