(Reuters) – U.S. economic activity slowed between late October and mid-November, as businesses reported generally lower inflation and greater ease of hiring, said the Federal Reserve (Fed) in its “beige book” communicated on Wednesday.
The publication of the US central bank’s report on the economic situation comes the day after comments from one of its influential governors, Christopher Waller, according to which the progress made by the Fed in the fight against inflation could make it possible to lower interest rates in the coming months.
“Economic activity has slowed since the previous report, with four districts reporting modest growth, two indicating stable or slightly declining conditions, and six noting small declines in their activity,” the Fed wrote after its survey of its 12 districts.
“Economic forecasts for the next six to twelve months weakened during the survey period”, stopped on November 17, indicated the American central bank in its beige book.
At the end of its last monetary policy meeting, the Fed once again kept its interest rates unchanged on November 1, while it wants to bring inflation back towards its 2% objective without causing a recession.
The markets expect the Fed to decide on a new pause at its next meeting in mid-December, hoping that the institution has completed the cycle of monetary tightening started in March 2022 in the face of galloping inflation.
According to the indicator favored by the Fed, inflation in the United States stood at an annual rate of 3.4% in September, compared to a peak of 7.1% in June 2022. New data on inflation are expected on Thursday.
A separate report on consumer prices showed stable data in October, while wage growth slowed slightly, although the jobs market remained tight.
(Reporting Lindsay Dunsmuir and Ann Saphir; French version Jean Terzian)
Copyright © 2023 Thomson Reuters