Michigan Economic Activity stays stable in September; auto industry brightens outlook

Posted on December 6, 2011

The Michigan economy keeps muddling along, Comerica Bank economists said today in releasing their Michigan Economic Activity Index for September.

The index was up one point to 87, which is the average for the first nine months of the year and two points above the average for 2010.

Robert Dye, the bank’s chief economist, said auto sales and production this fall bode well for future indexes.

“Michigan is benefiting from increasing auto sales and vehicle production,” he said. “U.S. auto sales increased to a 13.6 million-unit rate in November, and that is good news for the state.

“The climb out of the depths of the recession still looks very uneven, though, as hard-hit areas within Michigan are stuck with very high unemployment rates. … Housing markets in Michigan are still a drag to economic growth and will likely be soft through 2012.”

The index equally weighs nine seasonally adjusted measures of economic activity, including the construction, manufacturing and service sectors; job growth; and consumer spending.