US: Economic growth continued at a modest to moderate pace - Nomura

Analysts at Nomura note that the March Beige Book maintained that US economic growth continued at a “modest to moderate pace,” but some of the language regarding wage growth and prices changed.

Key Quotes

“It appears that wage and price pressures picked up between January and March in “many Districts.” The March report notes that “Most Districts saw employers raise wages and expand benefit packages in response to tight labor market conditions” and that “wage growth picked up to a moderate pace.” In the January report, this language was somewhat similar, but slightly weaker: “Most Districts said that wages increased at a modest pace.” For prices in March, “Prices increased in all Districts, and most reports noted moderate inflation,” whereas in January, this language was “Most Districts reported modest to moderate price growth since the last report.” Taken altogether, these changes to the Beige Book language are consistent with the recent firming of price pressures as well as a moderate acceleration in wage growth, as seen in the most recent employment report for January.”