The Conference Board employment trends index increased slightly to a reading of 111.76 in May from its downwardly revised reading of 111.11 in April. The May reading is up 3.0 percent from the same month a year ago.

“While the increase in the Employment Trends Index (ETI) in May erased the small declines of the previous two months, overall, the growth in the ETI has remained weak,” said Gad Levanon, director of macroeconomic research at The Conference Board. “Taken together with other recent indicators of economic activity, the ETI is suggesting that a significant improvement in employment growth is unlikely this summer.”