Roundup: Comerica Index Shows Michigan Is Booming

DETROIT - Comerica Bank's Michigan business activity index jumped 13 points in May to a level of 162, compared with 149 in April, the bank said.

The index reading of 162 indicates the Michigan economy has reached a new peak and is running 4.9% ahead of the comparable January-through-May period of 1994, according to Comerica.

"Michigan's strong economic showing in May reflected strength nearly across the board," said David L. Littmann, Comerica's senior economist. "The exceptional strength that sponsored this latest surge came from vigorous financial activity, loans and deposits, an improvement in steel and energy output, and better auto sales compared with April," he said.

The Michigan business activity index comprises 10 measurements and is seasonally adjusted, corrected for inflation, and expressed on an index basis with base year 1982 equaling 100. The index series has been calculated monthly since 1957 and depicts state economic activity over seven full swings of the U.S. business cycle.