Leading economic indicators rise 0.8% in February (by Jeffry Bartash)
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Leading indicators for the U.S. economy rose 0.8% in February, the Conference Board said Thursday.The Leading Economic Index climbed to 113.4, an all-time historical high. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were expecting the index to rise by 1.0% compared to a small 0.1% gain in January. Also, the coincident economic index, which looks at current conditions, rose 0.2% last month. The lagging economic index moved 0.2% higher.