Leading Index in U.S. May Signal Recession Will End in 2009

The index of U.S. leading economic indicators probably rose in May for a second straight month, reinforcing signs that the worst recession in five decades may end this year, economists said before a report today. The gains in stock prices, consumer confidence and building permits ... bolster forecasts the economy will start growing again in the second half of 2009. “The worst part of the economic decline is behind us,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates Inc. in St. Petersburg, Florida.Source: Bloomberg