The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. decreased by 0.3 percent in January to 119.6 (2016 = 100), following a 0.7 percent increase in December and a 0.8 percent increase in November.

"The U.S. LEI posted a small decline in January, as the Omicron wave, rising prices, and supply chain disruptions took their toll," said Ataman Ozyildirim, Senior Director of Economic Research at The Conference Board. "Initial claims for unemployment insurance, consumers' outlook and declines in stock prices, and the average work week in manufacturing all contributed to the decline—the first since February 2021.

"Despite this month's decline and a deceleration in the LEI's six-month growth rate, widespread strengths among the leading indicators still point to continued, albeit slower, economic growth into the spring. However, labor shortages, inflation, and the potential of new COVID-19 variants pose risks to growth in the near term. The Conference Board forecasts GDP growth for Q1 to slow somewhat from the very rapid pace of Q4 2021. Still, the US economy is projected to expand by a robust 3.5 percent year-over-year in 2022—well above the pre-pandemic growth rate, which averaged around 2 percent."

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) for the U.S. increased by 0.5 percent in January to 107.9 (2016 = 100), following a 0.2 percent increase in both December and November.

The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index® (LAG) for the U.S. increased by 0.7 percent in January to 110.2 (2016 = 100), following a 0.4 percent increase in December and a 0.1 percent increase in November.

The next release is scheduled for Friday, March 18, 2022, at 10 A.M. ET.