Gary Siegel

The directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond wanted a 25-basis-point discount rate hike to 1.5%, while the other 10 Fed banks preferred to leave the rate at 1.25%, according to minutes of the discount rate meeting, released by the Fed Tuesday.

Texas service sector activity "continued to reflect expansion in February albeit at a slower pace," according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index slid to 14.1 from 16.2.

Service sector activity "continued to improve in February," according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Tuesday.

Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region "expanded in February, as shipments increased and the volume of new orders rose broadly," according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the manufacturing index rose to 17 in February from 12 in January.

The consumer confidence index increased to 114.8 in February from a revised 111.6 last month, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer surged to 57.4 in February from 50.3 in January, its highest level since January 2015, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Tuesday.

The seasonally adjusted Milwaukee Report on Business declined to 58.69 in February from 59.81 in January, the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee reported Tuesday.

Texas factory activity, as measured by the production index, "activity increased for the eighth consecutive month in February," according to the monthly Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, released Monday.

Pending home sales decreased 2.8% to an index reading of 106.4 in January, after an upwardly revised 0.8% gain to 109.5 in December, first reported as a 1.6% gain to 109.0, according to a report released Monday by the National Association of Realtors.

The University of Michigan's final February consumer sentiment index reading was 96.3, compared to the preliminary February 95.7 and the final January 98.5, according to market sources.

Manufacturing activity in the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's region "expanded further with continued strong expectations" in February, according to the bank's monthly manufacturing survey, released Thursday.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for January dropped to negative 0.05 from an upwardly revised positive 0.18 in December, first reported as positive 0.14, while the three-month moving average (CFNAI-MA3) dipped to negative 0.03 from an upwardly revised negative 0.02 in December, first reported as negative 0.07, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported Thursday.

Gradual monetary policy tightening should be appropriate if the economy continues as it's going, Federal Reserve Board Governor Jerome H. Powell said Wednesday, noting the Fed is not behind the curve.

Existing home sales grew 3.3% to a seasonally adjusted 5.69 million-unit rate in December from an upwardly revised 5.51 million sales pace the previous month, initially reported as 5.49 million, the National Association of Realtors announced Wednesday.

The natural rate of interest, or r-star, "will not reverse anytime soon," Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President and CEO John C. Williams wrote in an Economic Letter published Tuesday.

If the economy stays on track, three 25 basis point rate hikes would be appropriate this year, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Patrick T. Harker said Tuesday.

Stating that he hates to make predictions about changes in monetary policy, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari seemed to indicate Tuesday he still believes the current monetary policy is appropriate.

The region's non-manufacturing sector "activity continued to expand in February," although the general business conditions index fell to 29.3 from 37.7 in January, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business, released Tuesday, indicates.

The composite index of Leading Economic Indicators was up 0.6% in January following an unrevised 0.5% increase in December, the Conference Board reported Friday.

The region's manufacturing sector expanded in February, as the general business conditions index soared to 43.3 from 23.6 in January, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.