The U.S. economy continued to expand at a modest to moderate pace in June and early July the Federal Reserve said Wednesday in its periodic Beige Book. The national summary, based on reports from each of the 12 Federal Reserve districts, noted modest growth in the Atlanta, St.

Housing starts in June soared to their highest level since October 2008, surging 6.9 percent to 760,000, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Wednesday but housing permits dropped 3.7 percent to 755,000 giving back half of May's gain.

Builder confidence jumped six points in July its highest level since March 2007, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported Tuesday. Economists had expected a modest one point increase in July. The six point gain to 35 was the largest month-month gain since September 2002 when the confidence gauge rose eight points.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance fell 26,000 for the week ended July 6 to 350,000 the lowest level since March 2008, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The prior week's total was revised up to 376,000 from the originally reported 374,000.

The nation added 80,000 jobs in June, making job growth in the second quarter 225,000 - the weakest quarterly gain in jobs since the third quarter of 2010 when the economy lost 136,000 jobs. The closely watched unemployment rate remained at 8.2 percent, unchanged from May.

First time claims for unemployment insurance fell a sharp 14,000 to 374,000 for the week ended June 30, the Labor Department the largest drop in nine weeks, reported Thursday. The prior week's total was revised up to 388,000 from the originally reported 386,000.

In May, consumer spending fell less than 0.1, or by $4.7 billion, reversing the 0.15 percent increase in April, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Friday. Personal income meanwhile grew $25.4 billion or 0.18 percent, down from April's 0.22 percent growth.

The US economy grew at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the first quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday in its third estimate of economic performance in the first quarter. The BEA report was consistent with market expectations but emphasized a moribund economy.

First time claims for unemployment insurance fell to 387,000 for the week ended June 23, from the prior week's 392,000, (revised from the originally reported 387,000) the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists had expected the report would show 386,000 initial claims.

The Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes rose for the first time in eight months in April, Standard & Poor's reported Tuesday The 10- and 20-city indexes each rose 1.3 percent, to the highest levels this year. Year-over-year, the 10-city index was down 2.2 percent and the 20-city index off 1.9 percent, both improving from March.