During the Handy Hardware Wholesale Spring Market in Houston, president Tina Kirbie pointed to a handful of economic indicators that bode well for hardware stores in 2011.

She started her roll call of positive macroeconomic metrics with the index of leading economic indicators, which rose 1% in December from November. The index increased 3.3% in the second half of 2010, compared with a first-half gain of 2.4%.