P.R.’s economic activity shows slight uptick in April
In April 2018, 1.3 million 94 lb.-bags of cement were sold in Puerto Rico, representing an increase of 3.4 percent (or 41,900, 94 lb.-bags of cement) when compared to March 2018 sales.
Puerto Rico’s Economic Activity Index, released by the Economic Development Bank, reached a level of 119.9 in April 2018. This represents an increase of 0.6 percent compared to April 2018. The EAI has registered an upward trend for five consecutive months, the agency noted.
The four main indicators that make up the EAI are the average of total non-farm salaried employment, cement sales, gasoline consumption and electricity generation in Puerto Rico.
The average non-farm salaried employment for April 2018 was 849,400, representing a moderate growth of 0.4 percent or around 3,400 additional jobs when compared to March 2018.
In addition, in April 2018, 1.3 million 94 lb.-bags of cement were sold, representing an increase of 3.4 percent (or 41,900, 94 lb.-bags of cement) when compared to March 2018 sales.
Estimated gasoline consumption in April was 84.4 million gallons, a considerable increase of 11.5 percent, or 9.1 million gallons more than in March 2018. Power generation was 1,351.5 million kWh in April 2018, an increase of 2.5 percent or 34,700 million kWhs than the figure recorded in March 2018.
The EAI is an indicator of economic activity and does not represent a direct measure of the real Gross National Product.
The exchange rates in the indicator are not the same as those of GNP, although the indicator has a high correlation with real GNP, which allows for monitoring trends in the economy of Puerto Rico, the EDB noted.
The EAI was formulated using a methodology similar to that used by the Conference Board in its coincident index for the United States economy.
