The Conference Board a reported on Thursday its leading economic index for the U.S. rose by 0.2 percent in February after revised data showed flat performance in January. That was the first increase in five months.

Economists had expected the indicator to edge up by 0.1 percent compared to the 0.1 percent drop originally reported for the previous month.

Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Economic Research at the Conference Board, noted that accommodative financial conditions and rebound in stock prices more than offset weaknesses in the labor market components.

"Despite the latest results, the US LEI's growth rate has slowed over the past six months, suggesting that while the economy will continue to expand in the near-term, its pace of growth could decelerate by year end," he added.

According to the report, the coincident economic index increased by 0.2 percent in February following a 0.1 percent gain in January, while the lagging economic index was unchanged after advancing by 0.6 percent in the previous month.