Japan's index of leading economic indicators stood at 40.0 for May, below the boom-or-bust line for the eighth month out of the past nine, preliminary data issued by the Cabinet Office showed. The leading index was projected at 40.0, according to 15 estimates in a Nihon Keizai Shimbun poll of brokerages and research houses. The estimates ranged from 30.0 to 50.0. A reading above 50 points to economic expansion over the next six months, while a reading below 50 suggests a contraction. The leading index is based on 12 indicators, of which data for 10 were available for the preliminary reading for May, with six pointing toward contraction and four pointing toward expansion, the Cabinet Office data showed. The coincident index, which measures the current state of the economy, was put at a preliminary 55.6 for May, above the boom-or-bust line for only the third month in the past nine. The preliminary reading was estimated at 55.6 in the Nihon Keizai poll. The forecasts ranged from 55.6 to 66.7. The coincident index is based on 11 indicators, with data for nine available for the preliminary reading. Five indicated an expansion and four pointed towards a contraction. The lagging index for May stood at 75.0, topping the boom-or-bust line for the 22nd straight month. The preliminary reading was based on four of the six indicators used to compute the index reflecting economic conditions three months earlier, with three pointing toward expansion.