Fed Reserved

   With just two days before the inauguration of a new President, the Federal Reserve Board released an unusually quiet report on the state of the national economy.
   The report, known as the Beige Book, said the economy "continued to expand at a modest pace" as the year ended. Surveys from the twelve Fed districts showed mixed results in most industries, as well as "varying degrees of growth" in employment, with a majority describing their labor markets as "tight." Wage pressures are likely to rise, the report said, as well as prices.
   Separately, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that hourly earnings rose 0.4 percent in December, but most of that gain was wiped out by a rise in the Consumer Price Index of 0.3 percent. That left a net gain in pay of 0.1 percent.