Leading Economic Indicators Fall 0.7%

An index of leading economic indicators fell 0.7% in July, the New York-based Conference Board said Thursday.

The decline, the biggest since last August, followed an unchanged reading in June, the group said.

The downturn exceeded economists’ forecasts of a 0.2% drop, Bloomberg reported.

The LEI is closely watched by trucking companies because it forecasts business activity for the next three to six months.