Beige_Book

The Beige Book, is a report published eight times per year. Each Federal Reserve Bank is responsible for gathering information on current economic conditions in its district. They do this by reports from Bank and Branch directors, economists, market experts, and other sources. The categorizes used in the Beige Book to report on the state of the economy in the September 8, 2010 report are Consumer Spending and Tourism, Nonfinancial Services, Manufacturing, Real Estate and Construction, Banking and Finance, Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Prices and Wages. The first part of the consumer spending reported that spending was up slightly. A lot of the spending went towards back to school needs, and seasonal items. Some good news for the automotive industry was the market was stable with some areas seeing a slight increase. Big ticket items like high-end electronics were down. Tourism was up in most areas, some of the regions report that it was higher than expected. The only down region was the Gulf Coast as a result of the BP oil spill. Airline use was also up during this reporting period. In nonfinancial service the numbers were stable to increase led by gains in information technology (IT). Software saw substantial revenue and sales gains in some regions. Real estate services were mixed with an increase appraisal activity for refinancing purposes, but low home sales limited needs for agents and brokers. Health care was also mixed with their stilling being a high demand for the service, but less people are getting elective surgery. Manufacturing slowed down from a stronger first half of the year. This slowing was caused by a lower demand for contrition related products. One of the bright areas was makers of semiconductors and other high-tech item saw further sales increases. Real Estate and Construction declined further during this reporting cycle. Home sales fell as a result of the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit at the end of June. Commercial construction also suffered a decline. Banking and Finance remained unchanged with a few areas reporting slight decreases. Some of the areas reported a slight improvement in consumer credit while the other half reports an increase in delinquencies and bankruptcies. Agriculture and Natural Resources did well during this period. The demand of agricultural products continued to grow. This was because of the stability of U.S. agriculture and the decline in other parts of the world. Natural recourse contuded to climb as well. Oil production in the U.S. was not affected by the BP oil spill. Prices and Wages remained stable. With food and energy cost remaining at current levels, with the exception of a few food commodities and industrial materials. Some areas reported an increase in primary metals and wood products. Wages in a downed economy remain flat. To conclude what I learned about the U.S. economy from the Beige Book is everything affects everything. What I mean by this is, if oil prices go up the so do food prices that effects what people spend on other items like high-end electronics. I got all my information from http://www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2010/20100908/default.htm