News In Brief

Leading indicators show economy is surging ahead

The index of leading economic indicators, which foreshadows trends in the economy, rose by a robust 0.9 percent in September, according to the Commerce Department. It was the strongest advance in four months, despite a downturn in the housing industry, which is burdened by high interest rates. The department also revised its August figure to show an increase of 0.3 percent rather than a decline of 0.1 percent. The revision meant that the increase for September was the 13th consecutive monthly rise in the index.