The government said Thursday its key gauge regarding the state of the economy remained at zero in August, according to a revised version of its preliminary report.
The diffusion index of coincident indicators, which is designed to measure the current state of the economy, stood at 0.0 percent in the reporting month for the first time since March 1998, the Cabinet Office said.
A reading above 50 percent is considered a sign of economic expansion, while a reading below that level indicates contraction.
The Cabinet Office said the index of leading indicators, a measure of economic growth six to nine months down the road, was revised downward to 55.6 percent from a preliminary 71.4 percent.
The index of lagging indicators, which gauges economic performance in the recent past, was also revised downward to 14.3 percent from 16.7 percent.
Ten of the 11 component coincident indicators available were in the minus column for August, including raw material consumption and capacity utilization by manufacturers.
Among the 11 component leading indicators, four were in negative territory, while six of the eight component lagging indicators were negative, the Cabinet Office said.
The diffusion indexes of the coincident, leading and lagging indicators compare the current levels of various economic indicators with their levels three months earlier.