The Beige Book offered its ubiquitous modest, moderate, mummified growth outlook but added a few points that provide The Fed more ammo for hiking rates.

The key higlights from the report:

  • tight labor markets ‘widely noted’ amid modest growth
  • U.S. employment, wages grew modestly since mid-april
  • price pressures grew slightly in most districts
  • contacts in several district ‘generally optimistic’
  • consumer spending up modestly, manufacturing mixed
  • construction, real estate grew, outlook remained positive
  • loan demand up moderately except for Dallas district
  • many Fed districts reported steady to good credit availability
  • energy sector remained weak
  • Chicago, Kansas city Fed districts saw slower growth pace
     
  • Dallas Fed district grew ‘marginally,’ New York generally flat

Some of the key anecdotes from the regional feds:

  • Consumer spending and tourism activity was up modestly in many Districts
  • Boston: March closed sales of single-family homes increased year-over-year in all six New England states
  • New York: Retailers report that inventories are on the high side, particularly for warm weather apparel
  • Philadelphia: Auto dealers reported that light vehicle sales have slowed somewhat during the current period
  • Cleveland: Only consumer spending segment reporting strong activity was restaurants
  • Richmond: Natural gas extraction increased since the previous report, while coal production was unchanged
  • Atlanta: Firms seeking employees for high-demand fields, such as information technology, healthcare, engineering, and construction continued to experience difficulty filling jobs
  • Chicago: Contacts again reported an increase in the length of auto loans
  • St. Louis: Even with a near-perfect year in the field, most row crop operations will struggle to break even unless a crop price rebound is sustained and significant
  • Minneapolis: Number of active drilling rigs in the District continued to fall through mid-May, reaching its lowest level in more than 10 years
  • Kansas City: Several retailers noted an increase in sales for lower-priced items and spring outdoor products, while luxury products sold poorly
  • Dallas: Gulf Coast chemical producers said margins were higher compared with the first quarter
  • San Francisco: Contacts reported that minimum wage increases pushed up wages for low-skilled workers in various service sectors, with diminishing ripple effects up the pay scale

 

The reaction was a further rise in July rate-hike odds (and easing of June and September).

 

 

Charts: Bloomberg

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