The Federal Reserve said the U.S. economy continued to expand “gradually” in July and early August as improvement in housing and retail sales helped outweigh weakness in manufacturing. Most regional reserve banks reported employment was “holding steady or growing only slightly,” the Fed said today in its Beige Book business survey based on reports from its 12 districts. The report reflects information collected on or before Aug. 20 and summarized by the Boston Fed. “Retail activity, including auto sales, had increased since the last Beige Book report” in most districts, the Fed said. “Many districts reported some ... (full story)