Federal Reserve says economy shows signs of bottoming out
Kansas City Business Journal
The economy continued to decline in March, but the recession is showing signs it may be bottoming out, according to a report the Federal Reserve Board issued Wednesday.
The board’s Beige Book, which gathers anecdotal information for the various Federal Reserve districts, found that overall economic activity contracted or remained weak in March. Five of the 12 districts, however, saw the rate of decline moderate, and “several saw signs that activity in some sectors was stabilizing at a low level.”
The 10th Federal Reserve District, based in Kansas City, reported tentative signs of a stabilizing economy. The district reported that consumer spending and manufacturing activity fell at a slower pace and that residential real estate activity and the agricultural sector were steady last month. Fewer respondents to the most recent survey said they expect further declines in economic activity than in previous surveys, the report noted.
On the downside, the Kansas City district reported that the commercial real estate sector weakened and that banks reported lower loan demand and expectations of weakening loan quality.