The immediate economic future looks bright, barring a few bumps down the road

The Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index, which was up 0.3 percent in March, indicates the economy looks pretty good heading into summer and fall. The index crunches forward-looking measures like building permits, factory orders and unemployment claims to predict where the economy will be six months from now. And it looks as if the economy is growing at a fairly strong rate. But there are potential clouds on the horizon: President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs and potential retaliation by China, which could lead to price spikes, industry contraction and layoffs. And Wall Street has been fairly volatile lately, with some steep daily drops in the stock market, as well as quick recoveries. So is the economy on track to continue expanding? And for how long?

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