Gary Siegel

Business inventories rose 0.5% in May, while sales increased 0.4% to $1.343 trillion, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed conditions "improved significantly for a third consecutive month for New York manufacturers," the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported Tuesday as the general business conditions index climbed to 25.60 in July from 19.28 in June.

With the Fed funds rate target near zero and policymakers using "unconventional" tools, it has been difficult for emerging markets to read U.S. intentions, which could have repercussions for the global economy, according to St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard.

Consumers still expect inflation of 3.2% in the next year and 3.3% over three years, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's June 2014 Survey of Consumer Expectations.

Recent economic data suggests the Fed should be raising rates, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Charles Plosser said Friday.

Although he expects inflation in the 1.5% to 1.75% range in the near future, topping the Federal Reserve's 2% target wouldn't be "a catastrophe," Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans said Friday.

Wholesale inventories increased 0.5% in May, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Wholesale sales grew 0.7%.

Initial jobless claims fell 11,000 to 304,000 in the week ended July 5, the Labor Department said Thursday.

While Federal Open Market Committee members "generally supported" the panel's current guidance, discussion ensued about whether accommodation could be removed sooner, or perhaps later, minutes of the June FOMC meeting showed.

The Federal Open Market Committee is still missing on both sides of its dual mandate: "undershooting its price stability objective" and "underperforming with respect to its maximum employment objective," Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota said Tuesday.

Monetary stimulus must be withdrawn at the "appropriate time" to keep inflation in check, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker said Tuesday.

Newly issued Treasury securities held in stripped form increased about $4.841 billion in June to a total of $214.098 billion, the Bureau of the Public Debt reported Monday.

The Conference Board's Employment Trends Index (ETI) gained to 119.62 in June from an upwardly revised 119.03 in May, and is up 6.3% from a year ago, the group announced Monday.

"Significant limitations" exist that prevent monetary policy from being the right tool to promote financial stability, Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen said Wednesday.

New orders for manufactured goods slipped 0.5% in May, after climbing a revised 0.8% in April, originally reported as a 0.7% increase, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

New York City business activity grew at a faster pace in June, as the current business conditions index climbed to 60.5 from 55.3 in May, the Institute for Supply Management-New York's Report on Business index, released Wednesday, indicated.

Texas service sector activity showed faster expansion in June, according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index gained to 16.9 from 13.1.

According to the ISM’s monthly report on business, the ISM index slipped to 55.3 in June from 55.4 in May.

Construction spending rose 0.1% in May, the Commerce Department said, 6.6% above the May 2013 level.

The Federal Reserve's monetary policy was on target throughout the recession and recovery San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President and CEO John C. Williams said Monday.