Contents
The Beige Book is formally known as “Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions.”
It is simpler just to say “Beige Book” as long as we know what the Beige Book is.
It is published eight times per year by the Federal Reserve about two weeks before its FOMC meeting (Federal Open Market Committee).
As such, the Beige Book summarizes the anecdotal information on current economic conditions presented by each of the twelve Federal Reserve banks, each representing the twelve Federal Reserve Districts.
By gathering information from various sources nationwide, the Beige Book provides a more comprehensive and localized view of economic conditions than the national economic indicators alone.
The information contained is derived from various sources, including business contacts, economists, market experts, and other regional and local sources.
The report includes qualitative information on factors such as employment, wages, prices, consumer spending, real estate, and manufacturing, among other economic indicators.
It does not contain specific economic data or statistical analysis but rather provides a qualitative assessment of economic conditions.
The Beige Book helps policymakers at the Federal Reserve level assess the economy’s overall health and make informed decisions about monetary policy.
Is the Beige Book Really Beige?
Now, for the more important question. Is the book really beige?
Let’s open up one and take a look. After all, these books are freely available to the public at federalreserve.gov
In today’s age of digital publications, it doesn’t have a cover, so I can’t tell you the color of the book’s cover.
However, if you open the PDF versions, you see that its graphic design has a beige theme with beige headers, sidebars, and beige section separators.
These reports had not always been publicly available.
It was only made public in 1983 upon the request of U.S. House of Representatives delegate Walter E. Fauntroy.
Before that, the report was called the Redbook because it had a red cover and was meant to be confidential and only circulated to a limited number of the Board and Reserve Bank staff members.
When it got re-formulated (and potentially with certain material removed or redacted) to be made publicly available, they changed the color of the cover from red to beige.
Some might have called the color tan.
But you must admit that “Beige Book” sounds better due to its alliteration.
Hence, the name “Beige Book” stuck.
The Federal Reserve also has or used to have BlueBooks, GreenBooks, and TealBooks.
They are all spelled as single words.
Only “Beige Books” is spelled as two words.
Why Might The Release Of The Beige Book Be Important?
For longer-term investors, economic conditions may play a role in their investment decisions.
Apparently, the event is important enough for MarketWatch to put it on its economic calendar at a specific time:
Perhaps for some intraday traders on the 5-minute candle-stick chart, this may be enough for them to stay out of the market at 2 pm Eastern Standard Time on November 29, 2023, in case there might be some news in the Beige Book report that might move the market.
Conclusion
Yes, the Beige Book is beige.
We hope you enjoyed this article on what is the beige book.
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Disclaimer: The information above is for educational purposes only and should not be treated as investment advice. The strategy presented would not be suitable for investors who are not familiar with exchange traded options. Any readers interested in this strategy should do their own research and seek advice from a licensed financial adviser.
