Melnick State of the Economy Index Declined by 0.5% in June

The decline in economic activity of the business sector continues.The decrease of employee posts in the business sector, which reflects the recession, explains the rise in the unemployment rate

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The Melnick State of the Economy Index declined by 0.5 percent in June 2009. The decline in the economic activity continues - the index declined by 3.2 percent in the second quarter of 2009, similar to the decline in the first quarter. During the previous month, declines were marked in most of the index components: the Industrial Production Index, which reflects the supply of the business sector, and the Revenue in Commerce and Services Index, which reflects mostly the demand declined to levels of activity similar to the levels reached three years ago. The numbers of employee posts in the business sector index, which reflects demand for employees, declined to a level similar to that of two years ago, explaining the rise of unemployment rate. Finally, the Imports Index, which reflects import of inputs for domestic production, increased and balanced the index's decline.

The components of June Index include: A decrease of 1.5% in the Industrial Production Index in May, after a decrease of 0.9% in April; a decrease of 0.5% in the Revenue in Commerce and Services in May, after a decrease of 3.2% in April; an increase of 4.9% in the Imports Index in June, after a decrease of 2.5% in May; and a decrease of 0.7% in the Employee Posts in the Business Sector in April, after a decrease of 0.5% in March.

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