A private research group forecast that the economy will grow slowly in the second half of the year because of the support it's gotten from the Federal Reserve.

The Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators rose 0.5 percent in July. The index rose 0.3 percent in June.

This summer's readings suggest the economy won't pick up enough this year for the jobless rate to drop much. The small moves higher however indicate that the country likely won't fall back into recession.

"The economy is slow ... and shows no indication of acceleration," said the Conference Board's Ken Goldstein.

- Associated Press