Watch the Weekly Leading Index For Clues About the Fed's Next Move
May 24, 2011 at 06:00 AM EDT
There's no shortage of economic indicators economists count on to make predictions. But one of the most reliable measures I've found is the Weekly Leading Index (WLI) developed by the Economic Cycle Research Institute (ECRI). The WLI is helpful for predicting recessions, and in this particular case, could offer some insight into whether or not the U.S. Federal Reserve will go for a third round of quantitative easing (QE3) . So let's take a closer look.