A gauge of future economic activity advanced 0.1 percent in November, suggesting that the U.S. economy will continue to expand modestly in coming months, an industry-backed research group said Thursday, AP reported. The Conference Board, based in New York, said its Index of Leading Economic Indicators edged up to 138.2 last month following a revised increase of 0.1 percent to 138.1 in October and 0.4 percent to 138.0 in September. The November performance was in line with analysts' expectations. «The recent behavior of the leading index so far still suggests that slow economic growth is likely to continue in the near term,» the Conference Board said. The index is closely watched because it is designed to predict economic activity in the next three to six months. In other Washington news, the number of newly laid-off workers signing up for unemployment benefits rose by 9,000 to 315,000 last week, the Labor Department reported. That was in line with economists' projections. The stock market, reacting to corporate earnings reports, mostly looked past the reports. The Conference Board said four of the 10 components that make up the leading index increased in November: money supply, vendor performance, manufacturers' new orders for nondefense capital goods, and stock prices. Manufacturers' new orders for consumer goods and materials held steady. Negative contributors were unemployment insurance claims, building permits, the interest rate spread, manufacturing hours, and the index of consumer expectations. The coincident index, which measures current activity, advanced 0.2 percent to 124.0 in November after rising 0.2 percent in October to 123.8. The lagging index was up 0.5 percent to 124.9 last month after advancing 0.2 percent in October to 124.3.
