The Federal Reserve has detailed how the US economy is growing, albeit at a modest pace

According to information released by the Federal Reserve, the US economy is showing signs of recovery - even if these signs only demonstrate a modest amount of growth.

Making the announcement, the Federal Reserve stated that the US economy expanded at a rate that could be described as “modest to moderate”, although it was quick to highlight that the situation in regards to employment had only improved at what it described as a “tepid” pace.

The national economic performance survey issued by the central bank noted that retail sales were shown to have risen in most areas across the country, while manufacturing activity continued its slow expansion across most districts. This highlighted that the US economy was starting to normalize after what had been a very rough number of years.

The survey, which is known as the Beige Book to industry experts, is compiled using the Federal Reserve’s 12 regional banks to compile the data. This is then released eight times every year and offers a snapshot of how the US local economy is performing over the course of the year.

Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, is optimistic, although he was keen to highlight that ongoing problems in Europe with the deepening of the eurozone crisis, coupled with US fiscal uncertainty, mean that there are still potential risks to the ongoing recovery of the US economy.

Despite the warning, the figures come as good news for those across many industries who are hoping that the growth, no matter how small, can be sustained.