OREANDA-NEWS. Comerica Bank's California Economic Activity Index declined in March, decreasing 0.6 percentage points to a level of 118.8. March's reading is 35 points, or 42 percent, above the index cyclical low of 83.8. The index averaged 113.7 points for all of 2014, seven and one-half points above the average for all of 2013. February's index reading was 119.4.

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"Our California Economic Activity Index dipped in March after holding steady in February. Losses were not broad-based. Four out of the eight index components fell in March. They were state exports, housing starts, defense spending, and the tech stock index. Some of the weakness in the export data may be related to the now-resolved labor issues at California ports. The most important component of the index, payroll job growth, was positive in March," said Robert Dye, Chief Economist at Comerica Bank. "We expect our California Index to resume its upward track soon, as the state economy expands through the summer."

The California Economic Activity Index consists of eight variables, as follows: nonfarm payrolls, exports, hotel occupancy rates, continuing claims for unemployment insurance, housing starts, national defense spending, home prices, and the NASDAQ-100-Technology Sector Index (NDXT). All data are seasonally adjusted, as necessary, and indexed to a base year of 2008. Nominal values have been converted to constant dollar values. Index levels are expressed in terms of three-month moving averages.

Comerica Bank, with 103 banking centers in the key California markets of San Francisco and the East Bay, San Jose, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Fresno, Sacramento, Santa Cruz/Monterey, and the Inland Empire, is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA). Comerica is a financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and strategically aligned into three major business segments: the Business Bank, the Retail Bank, and Wealth Management. Comerica focuses on relationships and helping businesses and people be successful.