Consumer Spending

Sluggish automobile and department store purchases slowed the pace of retail sales in May to a weak 0.1% increase, the government reported Tuesday, and analysts said they did not expect much improvement soon. "I think this is what the pattern will be like as we look forward," said Lawrence Chimerine, an economist with the WEFA Group in Bala-Cynwyd, Pa. "I don't think you'll see a big retrenchment, but there won't be much growth in consumer spending . . . for several years." Economists scrutinize consumer spending because it accounts for about two-thirds of overall U.S. economic activity.

Shoppers appeared more cautious about spending in April as cold weather and fresh concerns about the economy curbed people's urge to shop, prompting worries about a possible slowdown in spending in the summer months. Weak April sales reported by major retailers and jitters about U.S. unemployment data helped push the stock market down Thursday, with the Dow Jones industrial average falling 61.98 points, or 0.47%, to 13,206.59. Retail analysts remained cautiously positive about the coming months, but warned that more bad news about the economy could further dampen consumer spending.

The government said Thursday that consumer spending rose a slim 0.2% in March, its weakest performance in six months and a sign, analysts said, that consumers are contributing to an economic slowdown. The sluggish spending came even as personal income rose a strong 0.8%. That combination boosted the personal savings rate to its highest level in nearly four years, the Commerce Department reported. Analysts said Thursday's reports provided new confirmation that economic growth is slowing and that consumers are helping apply the brakes.

WASHINGTON - The American economy grew at a sluggish rate in the first quarter, stirring more doubts about the strength of the recovery and the outlook for jobs in coming months. The economy expanded at a lackluster 2.2% annual rate in the first three months of the year, down from a 3% pace in the fourth quarter of last year, the Commerce Department said Friday. Most analysts were expecting the gross domestic product - the total value of goods and services produced in the U.S. - to increase at a 2.6% rate or more in the January-March period.

U.S. economic growth slowed sharply in the spring, stoking concerns about a weak job market, a drawn-out struggle for the unemployed and growing financial pressures on millions of American families. The nation's gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 2.4% in the second quarter, falling from an upwardly revised 3.7% expansion in the first three months of the year, the Commerce Department said Friday. While many economists had expected growth to moderate, the reported decline was a jolting 35% below the previous quarter.

Consumer spending fell for a record sixth straight month in December as recession-battered households, worried about surging layoffs, boosted their savings rates to the highest level since May. Economists expect consumer spending, which accounts for the largest portion of total economic activity, to remain weak this year, prolonging an already painful recession. The Commerce Department reported Monday that personal consumption spending dropped 1% in December. That was slightly worse than the 0.

The savings rate for U.S. households fell in July to the lowest level in three months as spending outpaced income, the Commerce Department estimated Monday. The savings rate fell to 5.9% from 6.2% in June, which had been the highest level in a year. Consumer spending rose 0.4% in July while personal income increased 0.2%. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke singled out the higher savings rate as a key factor in slower-than-expected economic growth for the second quarter.

For the first time in a year, Americans have stopped spending more. Consumer spending failed to budge from April to May, evidence that high gasoline prices and unemployment are squeezing household budgets. When adjusted for inflation, spending dropped 0.1% last month, the Commerce Department reported Monday. April's consumer spending figures were revised to show a similar decline when adjusting for inflation. It marked the first two-month decline in inflation-adjusted spending since April 2009.

If the current frenzy of corporate downsizing continues unabated, who will be left to purchase the goods and services? R. J. EVANS Santa Monica

Consumer spending in the U.S. rose in February for a fifth consecutive month, a rebound that will require gains in employment in order to be sustained. The 0.3% increase in purchases matched the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News and followed a 0.4% advance in January, Commerce Department figures showed Monday. Incomes were unchanged, falling short of expectations as winter storms hurt hiring and hours worked. "Considering the circumstances, this is a fine performance with the job market still not strong," said Michael Moran, chief economist at Daiwa Securities America Inc. in New York.

What high gas prices? American consumer spending last month increased by the most in seven months, even though the rise in their incomes was less impressive. Spending was up 0.8% in February after increasing 0.4% in January , according to the Commerce Department . Even when adjusted for inflation, much of it gas price-related , spending was still up 0.5% -- the best showing in five months. Analysts had worried that the rising cost of fuel would force consumers to cut back elsewhere.

Shoppers hit the malls in February with their wallets open and handed retailers a robust start to the spring season amid another sign of a recovering economy. Strong retail sales and other good news about unemployment claims and consumer spending helped push the stock market up Thursday, with the Dow Jones industrial average rising 28 points to 12,980 points. Retail analysts were upbeat about the coming months but cautioned that soaring gasoline prices could potentially damp consumer spending.

Oil extended the longest rally in two years as tensions with Iran threatened supplies while signs of economic growth boosted the outlook for demand. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed at the highest level since June 2008. Crude for April delivery rose for a seventh day, increasing 1.8% to $109.77 a barrel, the highest settlement since May 3. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index increased 0.2% to 1,365.74 after earlier rallying as much as 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.74 points to 12,982.95, retreating from an almost four-year high.

The nation's busiest seaport complex had its best January since the recession because of a weak dollar, stronger Asian economies and a steadier U.S. consumer. The cargo traffic numbers also showed the increasing importance of exports at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which rank first and second in the U.S. for container cargo, respectively. As recently as 2008, imports outpaced exports by more than 3 to 1. But in January, the ratio had shrunk to a little more than 2 to 1. Although the U.S. trade deficit hasn't declined, the two ports have done well in luring more customers that ship goods overseas, economist Paul Bingham said.

In what has become a familiar refrain from the chairman of the Federal Reserve,  Ben S. Bernanke described the economic recovery Thursday as “frustratingly slow” and said that “significant headwinds” face consumers and the broader economy. In his first public exchange with Congress this year, Bernanke told members of the House Budget Committee that while the economy has been improving recently -- with consumer spending, manufacturing and job growth up in recent months -- the outlook remains uncertain.

Consumers had more money in their pockets in December, but instead of spending it all they tucked away some of it in their savings. Personal incomes rose $61.3 billion, or 0.5%, to $13.1 trillion in December from November, the highest month-to-month jump in nearly a year, according to the Commerce Department. The increase was fueled in part by rising wages and salaries. But personal consumption expenditures last month dipped $2 billion, or 0.1%, to nearly $10.9 trillion in an about-face from November.

What high gas prices? American consumer spending last month increased by the most in seven months, even though the rise in their incomes was less impressive. Spending was up 0.8% in February after increasing 0.4% in January , according to the Commerce Department . Even when adjusted for inflation, much of it gas price-related , spending was still up 0.5% -- the best showing in five months. Analysts had worried that the rising cost of fuel would force consumers to cut back elsewhere.

U.S. consumers increased spending for an eighth straight month in February, but much of the gain went to cover rising food and energy costs, providing only a modest lift to the economy. Although the report from the Commerce Department on Monday was the latest to suggest that the rising cost of living would dent growth in the first quarter, the recovery from the worst recession since the 1930s remains intact. Personal spending rose 0.7% in February, before adjusting for inflation, after rising 0.3% in January.

The American economy ended a year of mostly disappointments with modestly stronger growth, but still less than what was hoped for by many analysts. The nation's gross domestic product -- the total value of goods and services produced in the U.S. -- rose 2.8% in the fourth quarter from the prior quarter, the Commerce Department reported Friday. While that was an acceleration from the feeble growth rate of 1.8% in the summer, the latest GDP figure was below the 3% that most analysts were projecting.

Despite high unemployment and volatile global markets, retail sales are estimated to rise a modest 3.4% in the new year, a survey says. That's below the 4.7% growth that the retail industry saw in 2011, according to industry group National Retail Federation, but healthy considering the economic pressures still facing many consumers. “Over the last 18 months, retailers have been on the forefront of the economic recovery - creating jobs, encouraging consumer spending, and investing in America,” said Matthew Shay, the group's chief executive and president.