- The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for Australia increased 0.8%
- Coincident Economic Index increased 0.1%
- “Taken together, the widespread growth in both the LEI and CEI suggests that the economy will continue to expand in the first half of 2014, and the pace of growth is likely to pick up.”
LEADING INDICATORS:
- All seven components advanced, in order from the largest positive contributor to the smallest — are rural goods exports, the yield spread, building approvals, money supply, the sales to inventories ratio, gross operating surplus, and share prices
- Increased in December for the fourth consecutive month, and its six-month growth rate has continued to pick up in recent months
- Between June and December 2013, the leading economic index increased 2.2% (about a 4.4% annual rate), faster than the growth of 1.2% (about a 2.4% annual rate) for the previous six months. The strengths among the leading indicators have remained more widespread than the weaknesses in recent months
COINCIDENT INDICATORS:
- Coincident index increased 0.7% (about a 1.3% annual rate) during the six-month period ending December 2013, the same rate of increase as in the previous six months
- The strengths among the coincident indicators remain more widespread than the weaknesses in the last six months. Real GDP increased at a 2.3% annual rate in the third quarter of 2013, down from 2.9% growth (annual rate) in the second quarter
- Increased for the fifth consecutive month and its six-month growth has been relatively steady
- Three of the four components increased in December, the increases – in order from the largest positive contributor to the smallest – occurred in retail trade, household gross disposable income, and industrial production
- Employed persons decreased in December