国际英语新闻：U.S. Fed sees better economic situation at end of 2010

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. economy ended last year on an encouraging note, as economic activity continued to expand moderately from November through December, according to the latest Federal Reserve survey released on Wednesday.

The snapshot of economic conditions found that most of the 12 Fed districts noted that the economy "improved" or "increased modestly to moderately."

The survey, known as the Beige Book, was based on economic information supplied by the Fed's 12 regional banks and collected during the reporting period from early/mid November to December.

The U.S. central bank reported that conditions were generally said to be better in Districts' manufacturing, retail, and nonfinancial services sectors than in financial services or real estate.

The report also found that consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the overall economy, "showed improvement across all Districts," with most retailers reporting sales growth consistent with or ahead of plan for the recent 2010 holiday season.

Activity of nonfinancial services was reported to be steady to increasing across the country. But housing market remained depressed, with activity in residential real estate and new home construction remaining slow across all Districts.

The survey found that most parts of the country felt the increasing prevalence of cost pressures, but only saw modest pass-through into final prices because of competitive pressure.

The Fed noted that labor markets in most Districts are gradually improving, and "employment levels are rising in at least some sectors, generally by modest amounts."

The Fed has been keeping its federal funds rates at a historically low level of zero to 0.5 percent since December 2008. And the central bank announced last November that it would buy an additional 600 billion dollars in Treasury bonds over the next eight months to help lower interest rates and spur the economy.

Many economists expect that the U.S. economy will grow at a faster pace this year compared with that of 2010.