A leading indicator of the Taiwanese economy increased at a slower rate in March, indicating that the economy continues to face challenges, data released by the Council for Economic Planning and Development showed Friday.
The leading economic indicator increased at a slower rate of 0.4 percent sequentially to 135.3 in March than 0.5 percent in the previous month. The rate of growth slowed for the fourth month in a row. At the same time, the annualized six-month growth rate of the leading index eased to 6.3 percent from 6.5 percent.
Among components of the index, SEMI book-to-bill ratio, stock price index, real monetary aggregates M1B, and average monthly overtime in industry made positive contributions. The negative contributions came from export orders, the index of producer's inventory for manufacturing, and building permits.
The coincident index, which measures the current economic situation, meanwhile, decreased by 0.3 percent sequentially to132.4 in March, after dropping 0.2 percent in February. The trend-adjusted index decreased by 0.6 percent.
The lagging index, which measures the past performance of the economy, increased 0.7 percent month-on-month to 137.2, following February's 0.6 percent gain, data showed.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com