The Conference Board Leading Economic Index(LEI) forChinaincreased 1.0 percent in June to 158.9 (2004 = 100), following a 0.6 percent increase in May and a 0.3 percent increase in April. Five of the six components contributed positively to the index in June.

SaysJing Sima, economist for The Conference Board: "The LEI forChinarose sharply in June, combined with a strong gain in the coincident economic index, suggesting that risk of a near-term hard landing is easing. However, the economy will likely grow at a slower pace than last year, asChinacontinues to tighten monetary policy and investment growth correspondingly moderates. In June, the consumer expectations index improved markedly and was a major driver of the LEI gain, while continued solid industrial output was a major driver of the CEI uptick."

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index(CEI) forChina, which measures current economic activity, increased 1.2 percent in June to 205.3 (2004 = 100), following a 0.5 percent increase in May and a 1.3 percent increase in April. All five components contributed positively to the index in June.

The Conference Board LEI forChinaaggregates six economic indicators that measure economic activity inChina. Each of the LEI components has proven accurate on its own. Aggregating individual indicators into a composite index filters out so-called "noise" to show underlying trends more clearly.