DALLAS, Aug. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica Bank's California Economic Activity Index eased in June, decreasing 0.5 percentage points to a level of 105.9. June's reading is 33 points, or 46 percent, above the index cyclical low of 72.7. The index averaged 101 points for all of 2012, three points above the average for all of 2011. May's index reading was revised slightly down from 106.6 to 106.4.
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"Our California Index declined slightly in June primarily as a result of recent monthly fluctuations in residential building permits. With the housing industry coming back from the dead, I expect housing-related data to remain somewhat volatile for the remainder of the year. Most other components of our California Index were positive or neutral in June," said Robert Dye, Chief Economist at Comerica Bank. "Payroll employment in June was even with May, but that key indicator remains on an upward trend. July payroll data, which does not appear in our June index, was positive for California."
The California Economic Activity Index consists of eight variables, as follows: nonfarm payrolls, exports, sales tax revenues, hotel occupancy rates, continuing claims for unemployment insurance, building permits, Baker Hughes rotary rig count and the Silicon Valley 150 Index (SV150). All data are seasonally adjusted, as necessary, and indexed to a base year of 2008. Nominal values have been converted to constant dollar values. Index levels are expressed in terms of three-month moving averages.
Comerica Bank, with 105 banking centers in the key California markets of San Francisco and the East Bay, San Jose, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Fresno, Sacramento, Santa Cruz/Monterey, and the Inland Empire, is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA). Comerica is a financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and strategically aligned into three major business segments: the Business Bank, the Retail Bank, and Wealth Management. Comerica focuses on relationships and helping businesses and people be successful. To find Comerica on Facebook, please visit www.facebook.com/ComericaCares.
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SOURCE Comerica Bank
