Updated: 01-Apr-24 07:38 ET
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Updated: 01-Apr-24 07:38 ET |
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Highlights
- Personal income increased 0.3% month-over-month (Briefing.com consensus 0.4%) in February.
- Personal spending jumped 0.8% (Briefing.com consensus 0.5%).
- The PCE Price Index was up 0.3% month-over-month (Briefing.com consensus 0.4%) following a 0.4% increase in January. On a year-over-year basis, the PCE Price Index was up 2.5%, versus 2.4% in January.
- The core PCE Price Index, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.3% (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%) on the heels of a 0.5% increase in January. On a year-over-year basis, the core PCE Price Index was up 2.8%, versus 2.9% in January.
Key Factors
- Wages and salaries jumped a hefty 0.8% month-over-month after a 0.3% increase in January.
- Rental income increased 1.6% month-over-month in the wake of a 1.4% increase in January.
- Personal interest income was down 0.4% month-over-month while personal dividend income fell 3.7%.
- Real disposable income declined 0.1% month-over-month and was up 1.7% year-over-year.
- Real personal spending increased 0.4% month-over-month following a 0.2% decrease in January and was up 2.4% year-over-year.
Big Picture
- The key takeaway from the report is the sticky nature of the price indexes, although a close second is the recognition that spending outpaced income by a significant amount. Notably, the personal savings rate as a percentage of disposable income fell to 3.6% from 4.1%, indicating that the growth in spending was driven by consumers spending out of savings.
Category |
FEB |
JAN |
DEC |
NOV |
OCT |
Personal Income |
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Total Income |
0.3% |
1.0% |
0.3% |
0.4% |
0.2% |
Wage and Salary |
0.8% |
0.3% |
0.4% |
0.4% |
0.2% |
Disposable Income |
0.2% |
0.4% |
0.3% |
0.4% |
0.2% |
Savings Rate |
3.6% |
4.1% |
3.9% |
4.0% |
4.0% |
Personal Consumption |
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Total (Nominal) |
0.8% |
0.2% |
0.6% |
0.4% |
0.2% |
Total (Real, Chain $) |
0.4% |
-0.2% |
0.5% |
0.4% |
0.2% |
Core PCE Deflator |
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Month/Month |
0.3% |
0.5% |
0.2% |
0.1% |
0.1% |
Year/Year |
2.8% |
2.9% |
2.9% |
3.2% |
3.4% |