Leading Indicators Index in U.S. Fell 0.1% in June (Courtney Schlisserman)

  July 21 (Bloomberg) -- The index of leading U.S. economic indicators fell in June for a second month, signaling growth will probably resume slowing after a second quarter rebound.

The Conference Board's gauge declined 0.1 percent, after a revised 0.2 percent drop in May, a report from the New York- based research group showed today. The index points to the direction of the economy over the next three to six months.

The housing slump, now in its third year, higher food and energy prices and an increase in firings are likely to hurt growth. A slump in consumer spending in the second half of the year, as the boost from the government's tax rebates fades, threatens to bring the expansion to an end.

``The outlook for the economy has darkened in the last couple of weeks,'' David Resler, chief economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York, said before the report. ``The darkening clouds are from higher oil and energy costs and that's a huge tax on the consumers.''

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