New Federal Reserve Weekly Economic Index Shows Despair

(Bloomberg) -- In an effort to capture rapidly evolving economic conditions, the New York Federal Reserve this morning unveiled a new Weekly Economic Index (WEI). And it’s dire.

The index plots weekly data from 2008 through March 21, 2020, when it fell below the trough of the Great Recession.

Data include same-store retail sales; an index of consumer sentiment; initial jobless claims; a gauge of temporary and contract employment; a measure of steel production; fuel sales; and electricity consumption.

The researchers found that the WEI predicts 84% of variation in the month-on-month change in private non-farm payroll employment.

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