Japan Cuts View on Coincident CI to "Worsening"

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Cabinet Office on Monday revised down its assessment of the composite index of coincident economic indicators, saying in its CI report for August that the index is "worsening," a view adopted for the first time in four months. The change, which came after the government agency said the coincident CI was "halting to fall" for three consecutive months through the July report, apparently reflected production falls stemming from the prolonged U.S.-China trade war. The coincident CI, which reflects current economic conditions, stood at 99.3 in August against 100 for the base year of 2015, down 0.4 point from the previous month, the Cabinet Office said. The leading CI, a yardstick for the economy's performance months ahead, was down 2.0 points at 91.7. The monthly coincident CI is among the economic data used by a Cabinet Office panel of experts as a basis for determining the Japanese economy's cyclical peaks and troughs. END