India's leading economic index (LEI) increased by 0.1 per cent in June 2024, reaching 159.4 (2016=100), according to The Conference Board (TCB). This follows an upwardly revised 1.4 per cent increase in May. As a result, the LEI has risen by 2.8 per cent over the first half of 2024, reflecting moderately faster growth compared to the 1.6 per cent increase recorded in the second half of 2023.

In contrast, India's coincident economic index (CEI) fell by 2 per cent in June 2024, dropping to 149.9 (2016=100). This decline more than reverses the 0.8 per cent increase observed in May. Despite this setback, the CEI showed a substantial 6 per cent rise over the first half of 2024, effectively countering a 2.1 per cent contraction experienced in the six months ending December 2023.

“The LEI for India ticked up in June,” said Ian Hu, economic research associate, at The Conference Board. “Merchandise exports declined in June, however, all other components improved and more than offset the large negative contribution of merchandise exports, resulting in a slight increase in the index. Furthermore, the six- and twelve-month changes to the LEI remained relatively stable, suggesting that economic conditions will not change much in the reminder of the year. As such, The Conference Board projects India’s GDP to grow by 6.9 per cent in 2024, which is less than in 2023 but still by far the strongest performance among the major economies.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)