Japan's key gauge of the current state of the economy dropped for the first time in three months, the government said in its latest report on Thursday.
The composite index of coincident economic indicators, Japan's broadest indicator of economic health, retreated 1.5 points in May from a month earlier to stand at 110.5 against the 2005 base of 100, the Cabinet Office said in a preliminary report.
The index of leading indicators, an economic indicator which predicts conditions over the next several months and consists of 12 indexes such as account inventory ratios, machinery orders, stock prices and other leading economic indicators remained unchanged in May at 100.0 the report showed.
The Cabinet Office also reported the index of lagging indicators, which reflects conditions in the recent past, fell 1.6 points in the recording month to stand at a preliminary 113.7 against the 2005 base of 100.
The Cabinet Office maintained its recent assessment based of the coincident CI, saying the index shows Japan's economy is "pausing."
The indexes take in statistics from all aspects of the Japanese economy to demonstrate both the conditions at present and the future outlook for Japan.
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