Gary Siegel

The region's non-manufacturing sector climbed in August, as the general business conditions index increased to 15.4 from 8.1 in July, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.

Service sector activity "continued to grow at a healthy pace in August," according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Tuesday.

Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region "activity slowed in August," according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the manufacturing index slumped to zero in August from 13 in July.

The consumer confidence index rose to 101.5 in August from a revised 91.0 last month, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.

Sales of new single-family homes climbed 5.4% to a 507,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in July, according to data released by the Commerce Department Tuesday.

Seasonal adjustments to the gross domestic product data, some have recently suggested, may not be sufficient to give a true read of the economy, however, the inadequacies are unlikely to cause policymakers consternation or harm monetary policy, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Economic Letter released Monday.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for June gained to positive 0.34 from a revised negative 0.07 reading in June, while the three-month moving average (CFNAI-MA3) climbed to neutral level from a revised negative 0.08 in June, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported Monday.

While accommodative monetary policy can promote economic activity it may slow productivity growth by allowing unproductive firms to survive, according to the latest issue of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's Macro Bulletin.

The composite index of Leading Economic Indicators was down 0.2% in July following an unrevised 0.6% rise in May, the Conference Board reported Thursday.

The region's manufacturing sector expanded at a faster pace in August, as the general business conditions index climbed to 8.3 from 5.7 in July, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.

Existing home sales grew 2.0% to a seasonally adjusted 5.59 million-unit rate in July from a downwardly revised 5.48 million pace the previous month, the National Association of Realtors announced Thursday.

The economy continues to make progress, but it wasn't sufficient to warrant an interest rate hike, according to the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's July 28-29 meeting, released Wednesday, which also showed that one member was ready to vote for an increase, but would wait for more data.

Economists have mostly lowered their their expectations for GDP growth, according to the Survey of Professional Forecasters, released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia on Friday, with the prediction for this year cut to 2.3% from 2.4% in their previous survey.

The University of Michigan's preliminary August consumer sentiment index reading was 92.9, compared to the final July 93.1, the preliminary July 93.3, and the final June 96.1, according to market sources.

Industrial production climbed 0.6% in July, the Federal Reserve reported Friday.

Labor market "level of activity improved while momentum declined but remained high" as the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City Labor Market Conditions Indicators (LMCI) narrowed to negative 0.22 in July from negative 0.27 in June, according to the Bank.

The federal government ran a $149.2 billion budget deficit in July, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday.

Monetary policy cannot offset skill mismatches that could hamper employment, according to Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley.

"I think the time to begin normalizing monetary conditions is close," Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President and CEO Dennis Lockhart said Monday.

Consumers' view of the economy was fairly stable in the past month, with inflation expectations remaining at 3.0%, and earnings and household income growth expectations largely flat, according to the July Survey of Consumer Expectations, released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Monday.