Cardboard Box Index

People will use anything to figure out what is going on in the economy (after all, millions...or even billions...of dollars are at stake). You wouldn't think that a simple box could be a key economic indicator. But here it is: the cardboard box index, a way to assess consumer goods demand.

Here's how it works: the more boxes that are being produced, the more demand there is from consumers. With over 75% of "non-durable" goods (things that are used up such as food, clothing, office supplies, cosmetics, etc.) being shipped in a box, analysts assume that with more production comes more boxes (meaning more consumer demand). All this usually indicates a healthy economy and hopefully higher prices for the stock market.