J. Fred Giertz keeps an eye on the ups and downs in the Illinois economy, and you can, too. Since 1981, this economist in LAS and the staff at U of I's Institute of Government and Public Affairs have generated monthly economic indices, which they now regularly posts to the Web. By logging in, you, too, can get the latest snapshot of the state of the economy or view its historical swings.
Giertz says that there is good news to report: The state is out of a recession. The bad news is that the recovery will be slow. The index for January 2004 was 98.5, and has been rising steadily since September. The closer it gets to 100, the closer the state is to economic growth.
The index reports the current momentum of the economy. It got its name "flash" because developers wanted to emphasize that their measurement is a quick response in contrast to other judgments that take months to compile. The index operates by averaging the growth rates of corporate earnings, consumer spending, and personal income. Index values under 100 indicate a shrinking economy while values above 100 indicate a growing economy.
