Slow U.S. Consumer Spending Signals Caution

[question everything]

U.S. consumers have grown increasingly cautious ahead of the holiday shopping season, a potential weight on economic growth during the final months of the year. The latest evidence: Americans last month socked away much of their income from rising wages, pushing the personal saving rate to its highest level in nearly three years.

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It isn’t clear whether October will prove to be a one-month blip—setting up a holiday spending splurge—or a broader pullback amid mixed economic signals at home and trouble overseas.

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“The data indicate that consumers have become increasingly aware of economic crosscurrents in the domestic as well as the global economy,” said Richard Curtin, the survey’s chief economist. That may include layoffs across the energy sector brought on by low oil prices, struggles among manufacturers weighed down by a strong dollar and tepid overseas demand, terrorist attacks in Paris and strife in Syria, Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East.

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The latest government figures on personal spending, which measure how much Americans paid for everything from new shoes to home heating, reflect the lingering caution. Consumption climbed only 0.1% in October from a month earlier, the same slow growth as in September, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

Personal income rose a healthier 0.4% in October, led by gains in dividends, rental income and wages.

Rather than spend, though, Americans in October decided to put away more money. The personal saving rate, which measures the share of a person’s disposable income that is saved, was 5.6% in October, the highest level since December 2012. At $761.9 billion, the level of personal saving was also the highest since the final month of 2012, when new taxes set for 2013 skewed the numbers.

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http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-consumer-spending-up-0-1-in-october-1448458450

[hobbit709]

1. cautious, or broke?

[question everything]

2. I would say caution, and with good reasons

We just don't know what is around the corner. And with 2/3 of the economy is service based, meaning discretionary spending, many of us would rather keep the funds.

Of course, if wages were higher, some would be willing to go shopping but as it is..

[hobbit709]

3. Most of the people I know have $3 the day before payday, there's no discretionary about it.

Walmart would be upscale shopping to them.

[cantbeserious]

4. The 99% - Broke - The 1% - Living Large

eom