The continued strong growth in the leading index -- a 3.5 percent annual rate over the last 3-4 months, or 5 percent excluding the effect of declines in the money supply -- is signaling that strong economic growth should persist in the near term, according to the report. Six of the ten indicators that make up the leading index increased in November. The positive contributors - beginning with the largest positive contributor - were average weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance, index of consumer expectations, vendor performance, average weekly manufacturing hours, stock prices, and interest rate spread. The negative contributors - beginning with the largest negative contributor - were building permits, real money supply, manufacturers' new orders for nondefense capital goods, and manufacturers' new orders for consumer goods and materials.