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):

Service sector activity picked up in April, according to the latest survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Retail sales rebounded and shopper traffic increased compared to a month earlier, although big-ticket sales remained down. Revenues also strengthened at non-retail services firms. In addition, survey respondents at retail and non-retail service sector businesses were upbeat in their outlook for business in the six months ahead.
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On the labor front, the number of employees grew more rapidly at services-providing firms in April, while retail merchants made more payroll cuts. Average retail wages were nearly flat; at services firms, average wages picked up this month.
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Price change was moderate, with the overall rate of increase slightly quicker in April than in March. Separately, retailers’ prices slowed, while services providers indicated prices rose more rapidly. Survey participants looked for a small uptick in the pace of price increases during the next six months.