February 2008 Stats for spending and personal income:
The US consumer increased their spending by 0.1% – That is the slowest increase since September 2006
The US consumer decreased their spending by 0.1% in December
Spending by US consumers equates roughly to two-thirds of the GDP (see yesterdays report regarding the 4th quarter GDP reading).
———————–
Core P.C.E. inflation rose at 2% in February. That is within the Federal Reserve’s tolerance.
January’s Core P.C.E. was revised to 2% as well.
Total inflation rose to 3.4% last month. Slightly better than the 3.5% for January.
———————–
Personal income grew at a rate of 0.5%. Analysts were expecting a raise of 0.3%.
Working Thoughts 