Above: San Juan (CJ Photo)
By the Caribbean Journal staff
Puerto Rico’s Government Development Bank released its latest Economic Activity Index data on Monday, and while activity fell again on an annual basis, it rose on a monthly basis for the second straight month.
On an annual basis, the EAI fell by 5.2 percent in September compared to 2012, while the EAI in October fell by 5.4 percent. October was the 11th straight month in which that was the case.
Overall, the EAI grew by 0.6 percent compared to the previous month, following a 1.1 percent monthly increase in September.
September and October were actually the first examples of positive monthly growth for Puerto Rico since October 2012, although the GDB cautioned that it “cannot be concluded that the economic activity is necessarily experiencing an effective inflection point.”
The EAI looks at four indicators: total payroll employment, total electric power generation, cement sales and gas consumption. It is not the same as the GDP, although it is highly correlated to it.
Puerto Rico’s annual GDP rose by 0.1 percent in 2012, following five consecutive years of negative growth, according to the GDB.