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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: robert b furman who wrote (7524)	10/15/2003 2:21:20 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 25522

Fed: Recovery Built Speed in Recent Weeks Wednesday October 15, 2:02 pm ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. recovery gained speed in recent weeks as consumer spending strengthened and activity at long-ailing manufacturers picked up, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday. While labor markets remained weak, five of the 12 Fed districts saw some signs of improvement, it said. "Information received from the district banks suggests that, on balance, the pace of economic expansion has picked up since the last report," the Fed said in its "beige book," an anecdotal snapshot of economic conditions across the country. The mostly upbeat report, which was prepared for Fed policy-makers when they gather on Oct. 28 to discuss interest rates, covered a period dating from late August into early October. While many economists think the U.S. economy expanded in the third quarter at its fastest rate since late-1999, few, if any, expect the Fed to raise rates from basement levels any time soon. In fact, after its last two policy gatherings, the central bank said it expected it could keep rates low for "a considerable period." The benchmark overnight rate currently stands at a 45-year low of 1 percent. The beige book appeared unlikely to alter widespread expectations that the Fed is on hold at least into early next year. It found an absence of inflationary pressure amid still-weak, but perhaps improving labor market. "Labor markets remain generally slack, but some signs of a pickup are reported in New York, Richmond, Chicago, Minneapolis and Dallas," the Fed said. "Prices of finished goods were generally stable, and wage increases continued to be quite modest, though many districts note continued escalation of non-wage benefit costs -- particularly health insurance," it added.