(Economic) Conference Board suspends analyst (for leaking data early)

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?siteid=google&dist=googlesnap&guid=%7B11B1F926-411B-4780-9700-9BD507076677%7D

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The Conference Board has suspended an employee amid a federal investigation into the possible early release of sensitive economic data, the board said Thursday.

Delos Smith, a long-time senior analyst at the board, was suspended with pay, people familiar with the matter said.

At issue is the private business research group's closely watched consumer confidence index, a monthly economic indicator that sometimes can have a market-moving impact.

Under the Conference Board's procedures, news organizations, including MarketWatch, are given the news release about the index at 9:30 a.m. in order to prepare stories for release to the public 30 minutes later. Journalists sign a written agreement promising to respect the board's release time.

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