LONDON, March 13 (UPI) -- The Leading Economic Index for Britain rose in January, ending five months of declines, the Conference Board said Tuesday.
The index rose 0.9 percent to 103.1 after dropping 0.5 percent in December and 0.6 percent in November.
The index assigns a base value of 100 to the year 2004. A number above 100 shows the indicators have risen compared with the average for the index in 2004. Conversely, if the index is less than 100, the indicators are lower than the average for 2004.
Conference Board said the Coincident Index for Britain, which measures current economic activity, remained unchanged December to January, holding at 102.5.
The first increase in the leading index in six months suggests "a stabilization in the downward trend of the [indicators] may be under way," said Jean-Claude Manini, the Conference Board economist for Europe.
"The recovery in risk appetite on financial markets which started in December has been followed by an improvement in business and consumer confidence in January. Together with the modest improvement in current economic conditions, the development of the [indicators] is consistent with the outlook of a short and shallow contraction for the British economy," Manini said.
