The Kansas City Fed Labor Market Conditions Indicators (LMCI) suggest the level of activity increased and momentum remained high in April. The level of activity indicator increased in April from 0.28 to 0.40, while the momentum indicator decelerated moderately from 1.48 to 1.34 but remained at a high level.
The table shows the five labor market variables that made the largest contributions to the change in the activity indicator over the last six months and the five variables that made the largest positive contributions to the momentum indicator in April 2017. The activity indicator increased 0.21 over the last six months. The largest contribution came from an increase in the percent of firms planning to increase employment (NFIB). Sixteen variables made a positive contribution, and eight variables made a negative contribution. The momentum indicator was 1.34 in March, where the largest contributor to momentum was expected job availability (University of Michigan). Sixteen variables made a positive contribution, and eight variables made a negative contribution.