The composite leading indicator was 229.0 in December, up 1.5% from November, and was its seventh consecutive monthly gain.  This 1.5% increase matches February 1983 for the largest monthly gain since September 1958.  For the second straight month, no component of the Composite Index of Leading Indicators declined.      

The housing index advanced by 3.0% in December, its eighth straight monthly increase.  Existing home sales led the initial upturn, which sent sales to a record high in December.  The strength in sales was followed by a recovery in housing starts, which began slowly in July and continued to gather pace by year-end.  Consumer demand increased for furniture and appliances (+0.6) and for other durable goods (+1.4%). Consumer spending on furniture and appliances was down from a 0.8% growth rate in November while spending on other consumer durables was up from November's 0.6% gain.  This was the sixth straight month of sales growth for other durable goods.

Manufacturing in Canada continued to improve in response to rising U.S. demand.  In December, new orders for durable goods rose for the third time in five months, up 8.1% from November after a gain of 7.6% from October   As well' manufacturing sales volume rose for second straight month.  Together with steadily declining inventories, this raised the ratio of sales to stocks by 0.02, the fifth consecutive monthly gain.

The stock market grew by 1.7% to 11,273 in December over November.

The U.S. Leading Indicator was up 0.8% from November, after a 0.7% increase from October to November, and was the seventh straight monthly gain.