Consumer Spending Jumps 0.5% in August
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iStock/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — Consumer spending rose by 0.5 percent last month after falling flat in July, the Commerce Department reported Monday. The increase was greatly driven by car sales.
August’s boost marked the best figure since June when spending also rose 0.5 percent.
“The trends are pretty good. Consumers aren’t spending with great gusto, they’re not borrowing aggressively, but they are spending their income and adding to economic growth,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Analytics.
He said the bump in August is a good sign for the third quarter.
“The economy in the current quarter is doing pretty well. Growth is going to be over 3 percent, which is not too bad. And it’s laying a pretty good foundation for growth going into the end of the year and as we approach the key Christmas buying season,” Zandi said.
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