An index of Rhode Island’s leading economic indicators produced by Providence Business News and e-forecasting.com rose to 122.1 in February. more

New-home construction in the U.S. jumped more than forecast in March as multifamily projects climbed to the highest level in more than seven years. more

The population of the Providence-Warwick metropolitan area grew by 522 in the past two years, according to new population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau. more

Banks in the U.S. are lending the most since the recession ended in June 2009, supporting an economy weighed down by 8.3 percent unemployment. more

Forget about Obama versus Romney. The real contest in the 2012 election was about analytics. more

The Providence-Fall River-New Bedford area foreclosure rate fell 0.14 percentage points for February compared to the same period in 2012, CoreLogic said Friday. more

Fewer Americans than forecast filed first-time claims for unemployment insurance last week, a signal the U.S. labor market is maintaining its recent progress, as applications for jobless benefits increased by 2,000 to 336,000 in the week ended March 16. more

Though the housing market is rebounding in many local markets, there is one important segment that is not: First-time buyers are missing in action and represent a smaller proportion of overall sales activity than their historical norm. more

The Consumer Price Index in the Northeast rose 2 percent over the last 12 months in February, according to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. more

Bristol County, Mass., foreclosure starts dropped 46.8 percent in February while finished foreclosures dropped 46.4 percent compared with the second month of 2012, The Warren Group said Tuesday. more