For release: July 25, 2006

July Beige Book Sound Clips To Be Available

ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Audio highlights of the Federal Reserve's Beige Book, which summarizes U.S. regional economic conditions, will be available for downloading by radio stations beginning with the July 26 edition of the Beige Book.

Featuring the voice of St. Louis Fed regional economist Howard H. Wall, the brief clips will highlight overall conditions in the seven states of the Fed's Eighth District, as well as specific facts about some economic indices in the St. Louis Fed's branch cities of Louisville, Little Rock and Memphis.

Produced in MP3 format, the audio clips can be accessed by logging on to www.stlouisfed.org/news/press_room/audio.htm. The entire clip runs 2:57. Like the Beige Book print version (www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2006/default.htm), the audio clip will be available about 1 p.m. on Wednesday, July 26. Reporters are also welcome to contact the St. Louis Fed at the phone number listed above for an interview with one of the Reserve Bank's regional economists.

Named for the color of the cover and issued eight times a year, the Beige Book is best described as a collection of anecdotal information compiled primarily from various business and community leaders. These contacts provide this information confidentially, knowing that the Fed uses the information to put together a short-term “snapshot” of how the economy is doing. Although the Beige Book is not an in-depth report, the Federal Reserve uses it as one of many tools to help determine the direction of monetary policy.

With branches in Little Rock, Louisville and Memphis, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis serves the Eighth Federal Reserve District, which includes all of Arkansas, eastern Missouri, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, western Kentucky, western Tennessee and northern Mississippi. The St. Louis Fed is one of 12 regional Reserve banks that, along with the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., comprise the Federal Reserve System. As the nation’s central bank, the Federal Reserve System formulates U.S. monetary policy, regulates state-chartered member banks and bank holding companies, and provides payment services to financial institutions and the U.S. government.

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