New Economic Indicator Turns Lower

A new concurrent economic indicator, the Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index - PCI - plunged in January. This indicator is based on diesel fuel consumption used for over-the-highway transport of goods. From the press release on the Ceridian Index website:[INDENT]Results from a major new econometric report - the Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index™ by UCLA Anderson School of Management - show the U.S. economy fell in January after a significant increase in December, with the index falling at an annualized rate of 36.8 percent. The more reliable three-month moving average for January managed to show a 3.3 percent gain at an annualized rate following the exceptional annualized rate of 14.6 percent in the previous month. The more stable three-month moving average was up at a small 3.3% annual rate, due largely to large gains in November and December. [/INDENT]This graph also is from the Ceridian Index web site, where you can exercise the interactive features: Hit the link abo...