The index of Leading Indicators in the US rose for the fourth consecutive month in July reflecting stronger economic growth and declining jobless claims. The New York-based Conference Board said that its US measure of how the economy will perform over the next six months increased 0.4pc to 112.5 points after gaining 0.3pc in June and 1.1pc in May. The US economy expanded by 2.4pc in the second quarter after a sluggish 1.4pc performance in the previous three months, according to figures last month. Earlier today, the Labour Department said new weekly jobless claims dropped by 17,000 to 386,000 last week, below the key 400,000 mark and the lowest level since February. The Conference Board's coincident index also increased slightly in July, to 115.2. The coincident index has now been rising gradually from its recent low in April, which the board said was due to increases in personal income, industrial production, and manufacturing and trade sales. "The leading index is again signaling a pickup in the rate of economic growth, which is starting to be reflected in both real GDP and the coincident index," it added. //www.fxcentre.com