The Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators for Australia increased four-tenths of a percentage point in June, the most recent month for which data are available. June's advance follows a one-tenth percent decline in May. The leading index now stands at 161.9 (1990=100).
Inflation-adjusted GDP growth increased to an annual rate of 3.5% during the first quarter of this year, and the "current behavior of the leading index suggests that moderate economic growth is likely to continue in the near term," says the Conference Board, a New York-based business research group.
