Japan's key economic gauge drops unrevised 0.1 point in May
Updated: 2010-07-20 16:00
(Xinhua)
TOKYO - Japan's coincident composite index (CI), which reflects current business conditions, fell an unrevised 0.1 point to 101.2 in May, marking the first drop in 14 months, the Cabinet Office said in a report Tuesday, maintaining the government's preliminary findings.
According to the report, May's decline, following a 0.8 point rise in April, was led by drops in manufacturers' investment goods shipments (excluding transport equipment), commercial sales (both retail and wholesale), industrial output and large industrial power consumption.
The lagging CI, which reflects economic conditions in the recent past was also revised downward from a preliminary 83.6 to 83.4 and the diffusion index (DI) of coincident indicators, was revised upwards to 90.0 from preliminary 88.9 in May, the report said.
However, the coincident DI stayed above the key 50 level at 54. 5, slightly lower than the preliminary reading of 55.0, indicating the economy is in a state of expansion.
The government maintained its assessment of the indexes saying they continue to show signs of improvements.
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