Wednesday, December 02, 2009

LEAN NOT MEAN. PAINT IT BEIGE

Most Districts also noted that retailers were holding leaner inventories this holiday season,


Banking and FinanceBanks reported steady to softer conditions in most Districts.

Loan demand was said to have weakened in the New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, St. Louis, Kansas City, and Dallas Districts. New York noted particular weakness in demand for home mortgage loans, whereas Richmond and St. Louis reported this to be the strongest segment of late.
For the most part, the weakness appears to have been concentrated in the commercial sector, though Boston and Chicago reported some pickup in commercial real estate lending--largely refinancing. Credit quality showed signs of deteriorating in the New York, Philadelphia, Dallas, and San Francisco Districts but was described as stable or mixed in Cleveland, Chicago, and Kansas City, with Chicago reporting some improvement outside of commercial real estate. Increasingly tight credit standards were reported in the New York, Richmond, Chicago, St. Louis, Dallas, and San Francisco--largely on commercial loans.
http://www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2009/20091202/default.htm

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