Fed Survey Indicates Steady Growth

The economy’s strong points--consumer spending and construction--are gaining still more, and even long-beleaguered manufacturing industries are showing modest improvement this year, the Federal Reserve said in its latest “beige book” report. Robust demand for labor is making qualified workers harder to find than last year, contributing to an acceleration in wage increases, but inflation nevertheless remains tame, the central bank said in the anecdotal survey of economic conditions conducted by its 12 regional banks before March 8. “Prices of most goods remained little changed, and . . . businesses remain reluctant to press for price increases,” the Fed said. The reported combination of thriving growth and scant inflation implies Fed policymakers probably will decide against a change in interest rates when they meet March 30.