For the fourth consecutive month, the Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators for Spain increased in July, the most recent month for which data are available. Including July's two-tenths percent gain, the index now stands at 140.4 (1990=100).
Adjusted for inflation, Spain's GDP grew at an annual rate of 3.6% during the first half of this year. "The continued strength in the leading index suggests that this strong economic growth is likely to continue in the near term," says the Conference Board, a New York-based business research group.