SAN DIEGO - An index used to gauge the health of the local economy was down sharply again last month, a University of San Diego professor announced Thursday.
The Index of Leading Economic Indicators for San Diego County fell 2.2 percent in March, according to Alan Gin, who compiles the index for USD's Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate.
All six components of Gin's index were in negative territory.
There was a record drop in help-wanted advertising, and consumer confidence, building permits, local stock prices and the outlook for the national economy were also down, according to Gin.
There was also an increase in the number of people filing initial claims for unemployment insurance.
"The outlook for the local economy remains strongly negative at this point with no turnaround in sight," he wrote.
March's decline was the 35th decrease for the USD index in 36 months, according to Gin. It was also the sixth month in a row that the index declined by more than 2 percent.
