The banking industry has undergone substantial consolidation during the last 15 years, and that process has accelerated in the 1990s. One effect of this consolidation has been to greatly reduce the number of independent and locally owned banks. Some banks have been acquired by distant banking...

The Tenth District economy slowed down in 1998, with employment growing marginally below the national average. Despite very tight labor markets, employment growth remained healthy in many sectors. Construction; trade; transportation, communications, and public utilities; and finance, insurance, and...

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City conducts a monthly survey of over 100 manufacturers across the Tenth District. Other Federal Reserve Banks conduct similar surveys of manufacturers within their districts, as do a number of regional associations of purchasing managers. ; The increased...

Farmland values in the states of the Tenth Federal Reserve District rose about 5.5 percent over the year ended June 30, 1997. Indeed, over the past two years prices in many parts of the country have risen sharply. The jump in farmland values comes at a time of dynamic change in the farm sector....

The Tenth District economy posted a healthy gain in 1995, although growth slowed from the vigorous tempo of the year before. The district slowed sharply in the spring, but activity rebounded somewhat later in the year, in a pattern similar to that in the national economy. The district's main...

Sluggish growth in global food markets has diminished the competitive advantage U.S. agriculture derives from its huge resource base and superior infrastructure. Unless robust growth in foreign markets resumes, U.S. policymakers will face a difficult choice - let the market remove farm resources...

Bank mergers have attracted much attention during the last year due to a surge in mergers among the nation's largest banking companies. The consolidation of the banking industry has been going on much longer, however. Since the early 1980s, the number of banking organizations has fallen by more...

The proliferation of service jobs in the nation has received much attention. While the manufacturing sector has suffered substantial job losses during the current business cycle, job growth in services has been brisk. Because the service sector comprises a diverse collection of service...