Steel Orbis Tuesday learned that Comerica Bank's Michigan Economic Activity Index rose 4 points in December, fully reversing the decline in November. The fourth quarter 2009 average was up 2.3 percent from the third quarter and up 9 percent compared to the second quarter, which was the cyclical low. The Index was reported as being averaged at 74 for all of 2009, a 13 point decrease from 2008.
The Michigan Economic Activity Index weights nine, seasonally-adjusted coincident indicators of real economic activity. These indicators reflect activity in the construction, manufacturing and service sectors as well as job growth and consumer outlays.
"The broad-based improvement evidenced in our Index since May surfaced again in December, with seven out of nine variables contributing positively to the Index," said Dana Johnson, Chief Economist at Comerica Bank.
"Bolstered by a rise in steel production, as well as more favorable auto sales, December's Index erased November's dip, the only decline in the Index since its May 2009 low. Looking to 2010, our Index should continue to trend higher as a rebound in the state's auto sector evolves into a more broadly-based recovery."