Economy proceeding at modest pace: Beige Book (by Greg Robb)

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The U.S. economy continues on about the same modest pace reported two months ago, according to a Beige Book report summarizing information from the contacts the Federal Reserve uses to help measure the strength of the economy. The report said many districts reported "modest" or "slight" growth with a "weaker or less certain" outlook from many contacts. Energy, autos, and tourism were three bright spots. Financial activity was reported to have weakened. Non-auto retail sales were flat to down in September, and many retailers were reluctant to build inventories ahead of the holiday season. Most of the Fed's 12 districts reported that wages remained subdued and little change in weak labor market conditions. Despite a hesitation to increase prices with demand still weak, many firms reported some higher pass-through of costs in the retail sector, particularly for food and cotton apparel.