The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Japan Declines

NEW YORK, July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Japan declined 0.4 percent in May to 94.2 (2004 = 100), following a 2.0 percent decline in April, and a 0.8 percent decline in March.

At the same time, The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) for Japan, a measure of current economic activity, increased 0.7 percent in May to 97.7 (2004 = 100), following a 0.2 percent decline in April, and a 2.4 percent decline in March.

The Conference Board LEI for Japan continued to decline through May. However, the decline was smaller than in the previous two months. At the same time, The Conference Board CEI for Japan rebounded in May. Although its six-month change remained negative, this decline has also moderated recently. Taken together, the composite indexes and their components suggest that economic activity will remain weak in the near term, although the weakness could become more moderate.

About The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Japan

The composite economic indexes are the key elements in an analytic system designed to signal peaks and troughs in the business cycle. The leading and coincident economic indexes are essentially composite averages of several individual leading or coincident indicators. They are constructed to summarize and reveal common turning point patterns in economic data in a clearer and more convincing manner than any individual component – primarily because they smooth out some of the volatility of individual components.

The ten components of The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® for Japan include:

• Operating Profits
• Dwelling Units Started
• Business Failures
• Index of Overtime Worked
• Stock Prices (TOPIX)
• Six-Month Growth Rate of Labor Productivity
• Tankan Business Conditions Survey
• Money Supply
• Yield Spread
• New Orders for Machinery and Construction

For more information including full press release and technical notes:

http://www.conference-board.org/data/bcicountry.cfm?cid=5

For more information about The Conference Board global business cycle indicators: http://www.conference-board.org/data/bci.cfm

About The Conference Board

The Conference Board is an independent business membership and research association working in the public interest. Our mission is unique: To provide the world's leading organizations with the practical knowledge they need to improve their performance and better serve society. The Conference Board is a non-advocacy, not-for-profit entity holding 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status in the United States.  www.conference-board.org.

SOURCE The Conference Board

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