Total personal income in the U.S. increased in November
by 0.3% on a nominal basis. Strong growth in employment and an increase in the
number of hours worked supported an increase of 0.5% in total wages and
salaries, which make up just over half of total personal income in the U.S.
Real disposable income (adjusted for taxes and
inflation) rose by 0.2%. Real personal consumption expenditures, on the other
hand, rose at a slightly faster rate – 0.3%. Accordingly, the personal saving
rate dipped to 5.5% in November from 5.6% in October. Real spending on durable
goods was up by 1.1% over the month, while spending on nondurable goods rose by
0.9%. Spending on services, which comprise 65% of consumer spending, was flat
for the second month in a row.
On a year-to-year basis, incomes and spending moved
higher in November:
- Real disposable income rose by 3.5% in November, slowing slightly from the October rate of 3.8%.
- Real personal consumption expenditures grew by 2.5%
- Growth in real spending on goods (3.6%) outpaced spending on services (2.0%) although in dollar terms, Americans spend more than two times as much on services as they do goods.
Consumer prices were unchanged over the month in
November but edged up over the year by 0.4%. Excluding food and energy, prices
advanced by 1.3%.
In addition to the national figures on personal income,
the BEA also released a report on state personal income for the third quarter
of 2015. In California, personal income increased by 1.4% compared with the
second quarter of this year, slightly ahead of the national average of 1.3%.
Personal income grew the fastest in Nebraska and South Dakota (both at 2.2%),
while Alaska posted the slowest rate of growth at 0.6%. California ranked 14th
in terms of percent growth over the quarter. Compared with the third quarter of
2014, personal income in California increased by 6.5% versus 4.6% for the
nation as a whole.
No comments:
Post a Comment