Consumer spending rose despite inflation eating wage gains
Consumer spending rose in September even as stubborn inflation wiped out wage gains , according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis .Personal consumption expenditures, a measure of what households spend on goods and services, rose 0.6 percent in September and 0.3 percent when adjusting for inflation , according to the BEA, the same rates of growth as in August .American households were willing to dole out more money even after their inflation -adjusted take home pay was unchanged from September . While disposable personal income increased 0.4 percent last month, consumer prices rose 0.3 percent in September and 0.5 percent without food and energy items included, as measured by the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index.Prices were up 6.2 percent over the past 12 months, the same annual inflation rate as in August , according to the PCE price index, which is the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation .Core inflation —which excludes food and energy items—rose even faster, hitting an annual rate of 5.1 percent in September after an August annual inflation rate of 4.9 percent.
Consumer spending rose in September even as stubborn inflation wiped out wage gains, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Personal consumption expenditures, a measure of what households spend on goods and services, rose 0.6 percent in September and 0.3 percent when adjusting for inflation, according to the BEA, the same rates of growth as in August.
Prices were up 6.2 percent over the past 12 months, the same annual inflation rate as in August, according to the PCE price index, which is the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation.
Core inflation—which excludes food and energy items—rose even faster, hitting an annual rate of 5.1 percent in September after an August annual inflation rate of 4.9 percent.
