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Press Release Archives | U.S. Census Division
Economic Indices November 2010
For Immediate Release
December 6, 2010
Contact: Cristi Allen
callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 817-640-6166
Decision Analyst’s U.S. Economic Index Indicates
Economic Growth;
The West South Central Census Division Shows Gains
Arlington, Texas—The Decision Analyst U.S. Economic Index registered
99 in November, an increase of 3 points from October. The West South Central
Census Division had the largest 1-month gain (of the census divisions), increasing
from 95 in October to 99 in November. The trend is the U.S. Economic Index over
the past 20 months has been gradual improvement. Since the U.S. Economic Index
is a leading indicator (tending to foreshadow overall economic activity by 6
to 12 months), the Index is forecasting a slowly expanding U.S. economy for
2011. Here is the U.S. Economic Index for the past 3 years.
“The outlook for the U.S. economy continues to show modest
improvement,” according to Jerry W. Thomas, President/CEO of Decision
Analyst. “The manufacturing sector is improving, holiday spending is off
to a solid start, interest rates remain low, and most major corporations are
making money. The greatest risks to the U.S. economy are continued high unemployment,
the foreclosure problem, budget problems of all governmental entities, and the
lack of credit for small businesses. Since small businesses are so important
in creating new jobs, this lack of credit is retarding job creation,”
said Thomas.
The West North Central Division has the highest score at 100, while the East
South Central Division has the lowest score at 94. (See map below.)
| Three-Year History By Census Division |
The West South Central Census Division had the largest one-month gain, increasing
from 95 in October to 99 in November. The West North Central Census Division
has increased 3 points from 97 in October to 100 in November (its highest score
since January 2008). The Mountain Division has also increased 3 points from
92 in October to 95 In November. The East South Central Division was the only
division to show a decline, dropping one point from 95 in October to 94 in November.
(See the individual census division graphs below.)
Census Division Three-Month Moving Average
The Index numbers for the census divisions are a three-month moving average
to smooth out fluctuations due to smaller sample sizes. The reported Index number
averages the current month with the two previous months.
Methodology
The Decision Analyst Economic Index is based on a monthly Internet survey of
several thousand households balanced by gender, age, and geography. The online
survey is conducted the last 10 days of each month. The Economic Index is calculated
from nine different economic measurements using a sophisticated econometric
model. The result is a snapshot of current economic activity in each country
surveyed, as seen through the eyes of representative consumers living in the
respective countries. Decision Analyst conducts its concurrent economic surveys
each month in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia,
France, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Peru, Russian Federation,
Spain, United Kingdom, United States, and Venezuela.
Whenever the Decision Analyst Economic Index is greater than 110, it tends
to signal an expanding economy. An Index value of 100 to 110 suggests a slow-growth
economy, and near or below 100 generally indicates economic contraction. These
guidelines vary by country, however.
About Decision Analyst
Decision Analyst (www.decisionanalyst.com) is a leading global marketing research
and analytical consulting firm specializing in advertising testing, strategy
research, new product development, and advanced modeling for marketing decision
optimization. The 32-year-old firm delivers competitive advantage to clients
throughout the world in the consumer packaged goods, telecommunications, retail,
technology, medical, and pharmaceutical industries. In addition, Decision Analyst
owns and operates the American Consumer Opinion® Online panel—one
of the largest consumer opinion panels in the world—with more than eight
million members.
For additional information contact:
Cristi Allen
Publicity
Email: callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 1-800-ANALYSIS (262-5974) or 1-817-640-6166
Address: 604 Avenue H East
Arlington, TX 76011
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