The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the U.K. increased 0.4 percent in February, after increasing 0.2 percent in January and declining 0.2 percent in December. Four of the seven components made positive contributions to the index this month. The index now stands at 102.4 (2004=100).

"Recent gains in the U.K. LEI signal the potential for a modest recovery in the U.K. economy later this year, especially if improvements in business confidence continue," says Brian Schaitkin , Economist for Europe with The Conference Board. "However, financial turbulence in the Euro Area remains a major downside risk that could delay a turnaround in economic growth."

The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for the U.K., a measure of current economic activity, increased 0.2 percent in February,  after decreasing 0.1percent in January and remaining unchanged in December 2012. The index now stands at 104.2 (2004 = 100).

The Conference Board LEI for the U.K. aggregates seven economic indicators that measure activity in the U.K., each of which has proven accurate on its own. Aggregating individual indicators into a composite index filters out so-called "noise" to show underlying trends more clearly.