South By North Strategies, Ltd.

From the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond’s latest survey of service-sector activity in the South Atlantic (District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia):

Activity in the service sector strengthened in March, according to the latest survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Retail sales accelerated and revenues at non-retail services firms also rose sharply. Retail shopper traffic surged and big-ticket sales expanded, while merchants’ inventories flattened. Looking ahead six months, survey respondents were decidedly optimistic about demand for their goods and services.
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On the labor front, retail hiring and average wages slowed, while employment and average wages at non-retail firms picked up.
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Price growth in the broad service sector edged up in March, and survey participants generally expected further acceleration during the next six months.