WHAT: The Current Conditions Index dropped to 58 in December, a sharp decline from November鈥檚 Index of 75. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 too hard to see what December would bring for Rhode Island鈥檚 economy; like the nation, Rhode Island slowed a bit further, as weakness in the our goods-producing sector continued,鈥� said 溏心vlog免费B站 Economics Professor Leonard Lardaro. 鈥淚ronically, most people here continue to think that our state鈥檚 growth rate is accelerating, based on an inappropriately focused view that the unemployment rate tells us all we need to know about our state鈥檚 rate of growth.鈥�
WHO: 溏心vlog免费B站 Professor of Economics Leonard Lardaro, creator and author of the Current Conditions Index.
WHEN: Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016
HOW: Use attached information, including summary and charts prepared by Lardaro for news reports. He is available for broadcast and print interviews. The new information and other historical information can also be found on Lardaro鈥檚 web site at http://www.llardaro.com/current.htm. Lardaro will be blogging about the new labor data during the coming weeks. You can find his discussion and charts at http://rieconomy.blogspot.com.
FOR INFORMATION: Leonard Lardaro, office, 401-874-4128, home, 401-783-9563
Dave Lavallee, 溏心vlog免费B站 Department of Communications and Marketing, 401-874-5862.
BACKGROUND: The Current Conditions Index, created by Lardaro, measures the strength of the present economic climate in Rhode Island by following the behavior of 12 indicators.