May Steel & Vehicle Output Kick Michigan Economy Into Higher Gear, Reports Comerica

DETROIT, July 7 -- The Michigan Business Activity Index, compiled by Comerica Bank, gained 6 points in May to close at 114, compared with 108 in April. A year earlier the index stood at 115. Year-to-date, Michigan's economy is running 1.3 percent behind the first 5 months of 2002.

"In May, steel output and motor vehicle production gained sharply, while most other index components, including employment, were stable," according to David L. Littmann, chief economist with Comerica Bank.

The Michigan Business Activity Index (MBAI) represents ten different measures of Michigan economic activity compiled monthly by the Economics Department of Comerica Bank. The MBAI is seasonally adjusted, corrected for inflation, and expressed on an index basis with base year 1996 equals 100. The MBAI series has been calculated monthly since 1957 and depicts state economic activity over seven full swings of the U.S. business cycle.

In Michigan, Comerica Bank has 218 full-service offices in metropolitan Detroit, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Grand Rapids, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Midland and Muskegon. Comerica Bank is a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated , a financial services company headquartered in Detroit and strategically aligned into three major lines of business: the Business Bank, the Individual Bank and the Investment Bank. Comerica focuses on relationships, and helping businesses and people be successful. Comerica Incorporated reported total assets of $56 billion at March 31, 2003. To receive e-mail alerts of breaking Comerica news, go to www.comerica.com/newsalerts .