Federal Beige Book: A Slightly More Optimistic Outlook

The Federal Reserve has released its survey of the 12 economic regions of the country centered around its regional Federal Reserve Banks, and the news is slightly more upbeat.

They report some moderate growth in each of the Bank's 12 districts, in areas that include hiring, manufacturing and home sales.

One sticker might be the report from the Philadelphia regional bank which includes parts of South Jersey. The Fed report showed growth has slowed in that region, and it may portend economic sluggishness in the months ahead for at least part of the state.