Just one month after economic indicators seemed to show a strong labor market, the University of Oregon Index of Economic Indicators now seems to suggest “a noticeable softening of the labor market,” University economist Tim Duy said in a news release.
With the release of the economic indicators for May last week, the index sunk to its lowest level since late last year. The decrease is due, in part, to a loss of 3,300 non-farm jobs as well as a drop in indicators affecting building and business investment.
The index measures eight indicators that affect areas of the economy such as development, investment, consumption, and employment.
Duy, an economics professor and director of the Oregon Economic Forum, had previously said that while the index for April had declined overall, the labor market was resilient.
“Labor market conditions remained solid in the wake of rapid employment gains in the first quarter,” he said.
Now, it seems that the labor market is also on the decline.
“These numbers suggest a more significant weakening in the Oregon labor market than indicated by the April UO index,” Duy said.
This is the third decrease for the index in four months.
“The index is not signaling that a recession is imminent, but does suggest that the pace of growth is slowing,” Duy said. The methods used to calculate the index, which is a project of the Oregon Economic Forum through the University, are the same methods used to calculate the U.S. Leading Index of economic indicators.
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