DETROIT, April 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Michigan Business Activity Index compiled by Comerica Bank was 107 in March, up 3 points from February. The reading for March is the highest in seven months and matches the average for all of 2006.

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"The improvement in March was broadly based, with all 10 components of our index up last month," according to Dana Johnson, chief economist at Comerica Bank. "So far this year, the state economy is holding up quite well despite the restructuring of the local auto industry, higher short-term interest rates, and surging gasoline prices."

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 as an index, with 1996 as base year equal to 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.

Comerica Incorporated is a financial services company headquartered in Detroit, strategically aligned by three business segments: The Business Bank, The Retail Bank, and Wealth & Institutional Management. Comerica focuses on relationships and helping businesses and people to be successful.

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SOURCE: Comerica Bank

CONTACT: Dana Johnson, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist of
Comerica Bank, +1-734-930-2401 or +1-800-895-7708

Web site: http://www.comerica.com/