The U.S. Leading Economic Index (LEI), a key gauge of future business activity, fell 0.7 percent in March, its largest monthly decline since late 2023, the Conference Board said on Monday.
The Conference Board is an independent, non-profit, economic research body that is tasked by the U.S. Department of Commerce to produce and publish the LEI every month.
The drop in the LEI underscores growing concerns over the economic impact of ongoing policy uncertainty, particularly regarding tariffs. Analysts say ambiguity surrounding trade and tariff measures has weighed on both consumer sentiment and business investment.
The data comes as U.S. President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on the Federal Reserve to accelerate interest rate cuts, further unsettling markets.
The S and P 500, Nasdaq Composite, and Dow Jones Industrial Average all ended Monday's session in the red, reflecting rising investor unease over the outlook for growth. In currency markets, the U.S. dollar index — which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major peers — slipped to 97.92, its lowest level since March 2022.
Meanwhile, gold prices surged to record highs, with both international gold futures and spot prices exceeding 3,500 U.S. dollars per ounce on Tuesday, driven by demand for safe-haven assets amid growing economic uncertainty.
Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo Global Management, warned on Monday that persistently high tariffs could push the U.S. economy into a downturn, saying that the odds of a two-quarter contraction in output stand at 90 percent, with GDP falling by 4 percentage points. He said he was certain the U.S. will fall into a recession this year.
US Leading Economic Index posts sharpest drop since 2023 amid tariff uncertainty
Torrential rain from Wednesday evening has pounded dilapidated homes and crumbled tents across Gaza Strip, claiming lives and compounding the humanitarian situation in the war-torn region.
At least 14 people were killed in the Gaza Strip in the past 24 hours as homes collapsed and tents sheltering displaced families were flooded during a powerful winter storm, Gaza's Civil Defense said on Friday.
A woman taking shelter in a war-damaged house voiced concerns that the makeshift shelters, which were previously destroyed or severely weakened during recent Israeli bombardments, offer no real protection from the storms.
"The house leaks and stones would fall when it rains. It's not safe. We're afraid it could collapse on us any moment. But we have no choice and no other place to go, so we have to stay here," she said.
Rescue teams responded to 13 collapsed or partially collapsed houses, saving 52 people and moving them to safer locations. Search operations are ongoing after more than 15 homes were damaged across the territory.
"From the early hours until now, rescue crews and Civil Defense teams in northern Gaza have been working to retrieve the missing from beneath the rubble of this house. So far, they have recovered one victim and a child who was injured, but five people remain trapped under the debris and their condition is still unknown," said a rescue worker.
Victims died beneath the rubble rather than from missiles, highlighting the compounded dangers facing displaced families forced to shelter in unsafe ruins, with no alternative refuge available after more than two years of war.
"People sat peacefully at home, taking shelter from the wind, rain and cold. Suddenly, around three or three-thirty, the house collapsed on them for no reason except the torrential rain and flooding," a resident said, recalling the disaster.
Torrential rain brings more deaths, destruction to war-torn Gaza
