The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for Spain declined 1.6 percent in April to 102.6 (2004 = 100), following a 0.9 percent decline in March, and no change in February.

At the same time, The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index (CEI) for Spain, a measure of current economic activity, declined 0.4 percent in April to 97.7 (2004 = 100), following a 0.3 percent decline in March, and a 0.2 percent decline in February.

The Conference Board LEI and CEI for Spain both fell in April, and both indexes have been mostly declining in the past 12 months. In addition, the weaknesses among the components of both composite indexes have been very widespread. Taken together, the recent behavior of the composite indexes suggests that the current contraction in the Spanish economy is likely to continue in the near term and could even worsen.