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

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Oct 13, 2015, 09:00 ET

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Japan increased 0.2 percent in August to 104.3 (2010 = 100), following a 0.2 percent decline in July, and a 0.8 percent increase in June.

At the same time, The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) for Japan, a measure of current economic activity, declined 0.1 percent in August to 98.2 (2010 = 100), following a 0.2 percent decline in July, and a 0.6 percent increase in June.

The Conference Board LEI for Japan increased in August after declining in July. Its six-month growth rate has improved in recent months, but is lower compared to the prior six months. The CEI declined for the second straight month, and as a result its six-month growth rate has been flat. Taken together, the recently improved six-month growth and widespread strength in the LEI suggests that the current economic contraction should ease in the near-term.

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.

Summary Table of Composite Economic Indexes
	2015						6-month
	Jun		Jul		Aug		Feb to Aug

Leading Economic Index (LEI)	104.3	p	104.1	p	104.3	p
Percent Change	0.8	p	-0.2	p	0.2	p	1.1	p
Diffusion	90.0		60.0		80.0		80.0

Coincident Economic Index (CEI)	98.5	p	98.3	p	98.2	p
Percent Change	0.6	p	-0.2	p	-0.1	p	0.0	p
Diffusion	100.0		50.0		37.5		37.5

n.a. Not available p Preliminary r Revised
Indexes equal 100 in 2010
Source: The Conference Board All Rights Reserved