The government on Tuesday revised upward the key February index for the current state of the economy, reflecting a higher capacity-utilization ratio at manufacturers.
The index of coincident economic indicators stood at 80 percent, up from the preliminary figure of 77.8 percent released April 7, the Cabinet Office said.
A reading below 50 percent is considered a sign of economic contraction and a figure above that is seen as a sign of expansion. The index stayed above the boom-or-bust line for two consecutive months.
The office also revised the index of leading indicators to 60 percent, up from 55.6 percent, due to an increase in machinery orders. The index gauges economic moves about six months down the track.
The index of lagging indicators, measuring performance in the recent past, was left unchanged, at 100 percent.
The diffusion indexes of the coincident, leading and lagging indicators compare the current levels of various economic indicators with their levels three months earlier.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.