leading indicators

American

[lee-ding] / ˈli dɪŋ /

plural noun

Economics.

data that reflect current economic conditions and can suggest future developments or fluctuations in the nation's economy: issued, usually monthly, by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis in the Commerce Department.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Second, leading indicators already point to softer momentum ahead.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 30, 2025

Economic growth likely slowed to 4.3% in the third quarter from 4.4% in the previous quarter, as leading indicators point to weaker private consumption and softer imports of consumer goods, ANZ economists said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

Of the states that are likely to report results fairly rapidly, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan will be seen as leading indicators.

From Salon • Nov. 5, 2024

A batch of data from Japan includes household spending and consumption figures, leading indicators, and the latest foreign exchange reserves.

From Reuters • Oct. 5, 2023

Housing detracted, on average, around 1% from real GDP growth between the second and fourth quarters of 2022, but the leading indicators of weakness showed up earlier.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 9, 2023

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023