WASHINGTON  Mon Apr 21, 2014 10:43am EDT

(Reuters) - A gauge of future U.S. economic activity rose in March, pointing to a pick-up in growth in the months ahead.

The Conference Board said on Monday that its Leading Economic Index increased 0.8 percent to 100.9 last month.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to gain 0.7 percent.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)