Japan's Coincident Index Drops Sharply in August While Leading Index Edges Up

Japan's Cabinet Office released its August economic indicators on October 7, showing a notable divergence between current and forward-looking conditions. The Coincident Index, which tracks present economic activity, fell to 118.7 from 120.6 the prior month, a month-on-month decline of 1.9 percentage points, reversing a previous gain of 1.7%. The Leading Index, which points to conditions several months ahead, came in at 118.0, marginally below the forecast of 118.1 but above July's reading of 117.7, with its month-on-month change slowing sharply to 0.4% from 1.5% previously.