US personal income, spending rise in January

ANKARA

Personal income and spending in the US increased in January, coming in higher than market estimates, according to the latest data released on Friday.

In January, personal income increased by $9 billion, less than 0.1%, from the previous month, after rising 0.4% in December 2020, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis report showed.

The market expectation was a 0.3% decline.

Personal spending increased by $337.2 billion, or 2.1%, in January from the previous month, higher than the market estimate of a 1.5% gain.

In December 2020, personal spending was down 0.8%.

The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation indicator, increased 0.6% in January.

The core PCE price index, excluding food and energy, was up 0.5% from the previous month.

In January, the PCE price index soared 6.1% year-on-year, the biggest increase since February 1982.

The core PCE price index gained 5.2% annually, the largest increase since April 1983.