Federal Reserve Beige Book: Economic activity was largely unchanged in recent weeks, but consumer polarization intensified.

PANews reported on November 27th that, according to Jinshi News, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book showed that U.S. economic activity remained largely unchanged in recent weeks, with overall consumer spending declining further except for high-end consumers. The Beige Book noted a slight weakening in the U.S. job market and a moderate increase in price levels. The Fed stated in the report, "The overall economic outlook remains stable, with some surveyed businesses warning of risks of an economic slowdown in the coming months, while the manufacturing sector expressed cautious optimism." Due to the disruption of key economic data collection caused by the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, which lasted until November 12th, field surveys reflecting the actual situation of businesses and consumers have been closely watched in recent months. Fed officials will not be able to obtain complete labor market and inflation data for October and November before the December policy meeting.