In economic news, US industrial production unexpectedly fell in March while consumer sentiment slipped this month, but economists downplayed the two disappointing reports and said the economy's expansion remains on track.
Industrial production dipped 0.2 percent in March, a decline that the Fed attributed to a drop in utilities' output due to "unseasonably warm weather."
But the warm weather helped the housing market, with new starts posting the biggest monthly gain in March since May last year. Homebuilders broke ground at a seasonally adjusted rate of 2.007 million units last month, up 6.4 percent from February, the US Commerce Department said.
In a third report, the University of Michigan said its preliminary index of consumer sentiment in April dipped to 93.2 from 95.8 in March, as worries about jobs, high gasoline prices and an escalation of violence in Iraq hurt confidence, economists said.
RSS