By This Measure, The U.S. Economy Gained 13% Since January

In November, I posted on eight economic indicators that would tell us whether the economy was doing better. Since then, I have been working with a colleague to develop a slightly more detailed way to sum up how the economy is doing. Dubbed the Cohan Economic Index (CEI), the measure has risen 13% -- from 100 to 113 -- since the beginning of January 2009, when Barack Obama took the oath of office.