Business Week Index

BusinessWeek Index

The production index was unchanged during the week ended Feb. 15. That'sanother sign that the industrial sector is slowing down this quarter. Beforecalculation of the four-week moving average, the index fell slightly to 135.5,from 135.7 in the previous week. On a seasonally adjusted basis, increases inauto, electric power, steel, and lumber production nearly offset the declinesin the output of trucks and coal and rail-freight traffic.BW production index copyright 1997 Bloomberg L.P.PRODUCTION INDICATORS

LATEST WEEK YEARLY

WEEK AGO % CHG

STEEL (2/22) thous. of net tons 2,115 2,078# 0.8

AUTOS (2/22) units 132,444 127,374r# -3.0

TRUCKS (2/22) units 135,930 126,482r# 10.2

ELECTRIC POWER (2/22) millions 61,026 65,844# 1.9

of kilowatt-hrs.

CRUDE-OIL REFINING (2/22) 13,422 13,392# -0.8

thous. of bbl./day

COAL (2/15) thous. of net tons 20,817# 21,398 -2.6

LUMBER (2/15) millions of ft. 513.6# 496.9 17.9

RAIL FREIGHT (2/15) billions of 27.1# 27.2 1.9

ton-miles

Sources: American Iron & Steel Institute, Ward's Automotive Reports, Edison

Electric Institute, American Petroleum Institute, Energy Dept., WWPA1, SFPA2,

Association of American Railroads

LEADING INDICATORS

LATEST WEEK YEARLY

WEEK AGO % CHG

STOCK PRICES (2/21) S&P 500 801.77 808.48 23.0

CORPORATE BOND YIELD, Aaa (2/21) 7.23% 7.26% 1.4

INDUSTRIAL MATERIALS PRICES (2/21) 108.2 108.0 -1.9

BUSINESS FAILURES (2/14) NA NA NA

REAL ESTATE LOANS (2/12) billions NA NA NA

MONEY SUPPLY, M2 (2/10) billions $3,859.7 $3,860.2r 4.7

INITIAL CLAIMS, UNEMPLOYMENT (2/15) 309 308r -18.3

thous.

Sources: Standard & Poor's, Moody's, Journal of Commerce (index: 1990=100), Dun

& Bradstreet (failures of large companies), Federal Reserve, Labor Dept.

PRICES

LATEST WEEK YEARLY

WEEK AGO % CHG

GOLD (2/26) $/troy oz. 354.800 346.250 -10.8

STEEL SCRAP (2/21)#1 heavy, $/ton 145.50 146.50 0.7

COPPER (2/21) cents/lb. 115.4 111.5 -4.2

ALUMINUM (2/21) cents/lb. 76.0 74.8 0.0

COTTON (2/22) strict low middling 69.75 69.98 -14.2

1-1/16 in., cents/lb.

OIL (2/25) $/bbl. 20.45 22.14 4.2

CRB FOODSTUFFS (2/25) 1967=100 241.98 238.28 3.5

CRB RAW INDUSTRIALS (2/25) 1967=100 345.06 345.19 4.9

Sources: London Wednesday final setting, Chicago market, Metals Week, Memphis

market, NYMEX, Commodity Research Bureau

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

LATEST WEEK YEAR

WEEK AGO AGO

JAPANESE YEN (2/26) 122.61 124.39 104.44

GERMAN MARK (2/26) 1.69 1.70 1.47

BRITISH POUND (2/26) 1.63 1.61 1.53

FRENCH FRANC (2/26) 5.71 5.74 5.02

ITALIAN LIRA (2/26) 1681.5 1690.4 1547.5

CANADIAN DOLLAR (2/26) 1.37 1.36 1.37

MEXICAN PESO (2/26)3 7.782 7.777 7.545

TRADE-WEIGHTED DOLLAR INDEX (2/26) 104.3 105.0 95

Sources: Major New York banks. Currencies expressed in units per U.S. dollar,

except for British pound in dollars. Trade-weighted dollar via J.P. Morgan.

INTEREST RATES

LATEST WEEK YEAR

WEEK AGO AGO

FEDERAL FUNDS (2/25) 5.28% 5.55% 5.20%

COMMERCIAL PAPER (2/26) 3-month 5.39 5.38 5.16

CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT (2/26) 3-month 5.35 5.34 5.16

FIXED MORTGAGE (2/21) 30-year 7.74 7.85 7.24

ADJUSTABLE MORTGAGE (2/21) one-year 5.65 5.81 5.39

PRIME (2/18) 8.25 8.25 8.25

Sources: American Iron & Steel Institute, Ward's Automotive Reports, Edison

Electric Institute, American Petroleum Institute, Energy Dept., WWPA1, SFPA2,

Association of American Railroads

#Raw data in the production indicators are seasonally adjusted in computing the

BW index (chart); other components (estimated and not listed) include machinery

and defense equipment. 1=Western Wood Products Assn. 2=Southern Forest

Products Assn. ***=Free market value NA=Not available r=revised NM=Not

meaningful

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