A private gauge of U.S. economic performance for the coming months declined in July for the second straight month. The Conference Board, a business think tank, announced Thursday that its index of leading indicators dropped by 0.3 per cent in July, following a dip of 0.1 per cent in June. It was the first two-month decline since early 2003. Six of the index's 10 indicators contributed to the decline, including stock prices, hiring, money supply after inflation, and business orders and deliveries. Indices of current and lagging indicators rose in July, the Conference Board said. Indices of current and lagging indicators rose in July, the Conference Board said. --SP 2253 Local Time 1953 GMT
