THE RHODE ISLAND Current Conditions Index had a value of 42 in March, indicating year-over-year contraction, according to URI economist Leonard Lardaro. / PBN FILE PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
PROVIDENCE – The Rhode Island economy continued to contract year over year in March but is sustaining improvement, especially in manufacturing, according to University of Rhode Island economist Leonard Lardaro.
The Current Conditions Index value for Rhode Island increased to 42 from a value of 25 one year prior. A value above 50 indicates expansion, while a value below 50 indicates contraction.
Year over year, five of the 12 indicators that comprise the CCI improved, including retail sales, single-unit permits, new claims, and manufacturing hours and the manufacturing wage. All other indicators worsened over the year.
University of Michigan
The April survey recorded continued gains in consumer confidence due to a growing sense that the upward momentum in jobs and incomes is likely to persist, according to the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.
The renewed confidence is due to record federal stimulus spending, both recent and proposed, as well as the positive impact from a growing share of the population who are vaccinated, said U-M economist Richard Curtin, director of the surveys.
The largest and most important change in the economic outlook was that an all-time record number of consumers expected declines in the unemployment rate in the year ahead. Overall, the data indicate an exceptionally robust outlook for consumer spending through mid-2022, he said.
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