Gary Siegel

The Treasury Department auctioned $34 billion of four-week bills Tuesday at a 0.155% high yield, a price of 99.987944. The coupon equivalent was 0.157%. The bid-to-cover ratio was 4.23.

Narayana Kocherlakota, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis president, said Tuesday that he is troubled by both the 9.5% national unemployment rate and the reasons it exists.

NEW YORK – The unemployment rate, and the reasons it is so high, trouble Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota, who said the Fed may not be able to resolve the problem.

NEW YORK - The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $34 billion of four-week bills at a 0.155% high yield, a price of 99.987944.

NEW YORK – Weekly chain store sales fell 1.3% in the week ending August 14, the third consecutive week retailers experienced a sales decline despite consumer traffic remaining steady, according to the ICSC and Goldman Sachs Weekly Chain Store Sales Index.

Tender rates for the Treasury Department's latest 91-day and 182-day discount bills were mixed Monday, as the three-months incurred a 0.155% high rate, up from 0.150% the previous week, and the six-months incurred a 0.185% high rate, down from 0.190%.

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed "conditions improved modestly in August" as the general business conditions index climbed to 7.10 from 5.08 in July, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Monday.

Homebuilder confidence in the market for new single-family homes continued to deteriorate in August, edging down to a 17-month-low as the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index slipped to 13.

NEW YORK – Lending conditions are beginning to ease as banks relaxed some standards and terms in some loan categories, according to results of the Federal Reserve's Senior Loan Officers Survey, released Monday.

NEW YORK - Tender rates for the Treasury Department’s latest 91-day and 182-day discount bills were mixed, as the three-months incurred a 0.155% high rate, up from 0.150% the prior week, and the six-months incurred a 0.185% high rate, down from 0.190% the week before.

NEW YORK - The Treasury Department said it will auction $25 billion 56-day cash management bills on Wednesday, August 18.

NEW YORK - The Treasury Department said Monday it will sell $34 billion of four-week discount bills Tuesday.

NEW YORK - Builders’ confidence in the market for new single-family homes continued its slide, falling to its lowest level since March 2009, as the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index - a monthly gauge of builder sentiment – dropped to 13 in August from an unrevised 14 in July.

NEW YORK - The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed “conditions improved modestly in August for New York manufacturers,” the Federal Reserve Bank of New York today reported, as the general business conditions index climbed to 7.10 in the month from 5.08 in July, the Fed reported.

The federal funds rate must stay accommodative, but also must begin to rise, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City president Thomas Hoenig said Friday.

Economic growth appears to be weakening compared to estimates from three months ago, as those surveyed for the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s third-quarter survey of professional forecasters cut estimates of gross domestic product growth to 2.3% from 3.3%.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary August consumer sentiment index reading was 69.6 compared to the final July 67.8, according to market sources.

NEW YORK – The fed funds rate must stay accommodative, but also must begin to rise now so increases can be slow and deliberate, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Thomas Hoenig said Friday.

NEW YORK – Economic growth appears to be weakening compared to estimates from three months ago, as those surveyed for the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s third quarter survey of Professional Forecasters cut estimates of GDP growth this quarter to 2.3% from 3.3%.

NEW YORK - The University of Michigan's preliminary August consumer sentiment index reading was 69.6, compared to the final July 67.8, the preliminary July 66.5, and the final June 76.0, according to market sources.