Leading indicators are data series that typically change before the wider economic conditions they are used to monitor. Their movements may signal the direction of subsequent developments in areas such as output, employment or investment. Analysts use them in economic monitoring and forecasting, but their signals are not conclusive: the relationship between an indicator and the variable it anticipates can change over time and across economic conditions.
Source: European Central Bank (ECB) (source). This glossary entry is an independently worded adaptation of the cited information.