Beige Book picture is blue

The Beige Book is out, and the picture it paints of the economy is, well, blue.

In its latest survey of business conditions around the country, the Federal Reserve Bank reported that things appear to be weakening in nine of its 12 districts, including St. Louis, while mixed or flat in the other three.

In the region covered by the St. Louis Fed - roughly from central Missouri to central Tennessee, southern Indiana to northern Mississippi - economic activity slowed in February and early March, according to the report, though some sectors improved.

Some highlights:

- Manufacturing remained steady, with some plants expanding and others cutting back

- The services sector is softening, particularly in financial services and retail.

- Home sales and building permits continued to decline, but commercial construction is holding steady.

- Loans at small and mid-sized banks increased by a small margin.

- In farming, winter wheat acreage increased by 23 percent from 2007, though flooding may damage some crops. Farmers said they plan to plant 10 percent fewer acres of corn, 22 percent fewer of sorghum and 30 percent fewer of cotton than last year. Soybean acres are expected to climb 15 percent.

Want to read the Book? Here’s a link.