TheStreet.com 21: A New Index for the Economic Recovery

Is it here yet? Economic recovery, the missing link in this year's stock market rally, may be buried under thousands of quarterly earnings reports due out this month.

For investors who can't dig through every one, we've created TheStreet.com 21. This index of 21 companies is designed to be a leading indicator of the economy's direction for the rest of the year and beyond.

Earnings season is always important, and this summer is unusually critical. In the slew of second-quarter earnings reports, companies will reveal their outlooks for the rest of the year, confirming or denying whether an economic recovery -- the basis for this year's remarkable rally -- will in fact materialize. ...