Comerica Bank’s California Economic Activity Index increased by 1.6 percentage points in September to a level of 124.3, the bank said.
According to Comerica, September’s reading was 40 points, or 48 percent, above the index cyclical low of 84.1.
The index averaged 119.8 points for all of 2015, six and two-fifths points above the average for all of 2014. August’s index reading was 122.7.
Robert Dye, chief economist at Comerica Bank, said the increase indicates that the California economy accelerated at the end of the third quarter.
“The uptick in California economic activity is consistent with solid third quarter U.S. GDP growth,” he said. “We expect the state to continue to show good momentum through the end of this year and into early next year.”
Including the rise in September, Comerica’s California index has increased for six consecutive months.
The index is comprised of eight components, seven of which improved in September: nonfarm employment, state exports, claims for unemployment insurance, defense spending, house prices, hotel occupancy and the NASDAQ 100 Technology Stock index.
House prices were stronger than expected in September, with San Diego house prices gaining 0.3 percent for the month, on par with the increases seen in San Francisco.
The final factor, housing starts, declined for the month.
The data used to calculate the California Economic Activity Index are seasonally adjusted, as necessary, and indexed to a base year of 2008. Nominal values have been converted to real dollar values. Index levels are expressed in terms of three-month moving averages.
