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Strategies & Market Trends : Guidance and Visibility -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: X Y Zebra who wrote (75492)	9/30/2002 12:03:11 PM
From: X Y Zebra	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 208838

lower rates ahead (NOV) --or better, an earlier surprise ? _____________________________ Consumer spending fades in Aug. By Rex Nutting, CBS.MarketWatch.com Last Update: 8:33 AM ET Sep 30, 2002 WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) - Despite very strong auto sales, real consumer spending rose just 0.1 percent in August, the weakest growth in three months, the Commerce Department said Monday. Half of the gain in spending was due to strong auto sales during the month. Read the full release. In the meantime, consumers' real disposable incomes grew 0.2 percent, boosting the savings rate to 3.6 percent of disposable income. The weak growth in both incomes and spending reflects a mid-summer slump, which has raised fears that the economy might be slipping back into recession. Last week, the Federal Reserve kept its overnight interest rates unchanged while warning that the strength of final demand was uncertain amid growing international tensions. Inflation accelerated slightly in August. The personal consumption expenditure price index rose 0.2 percent in August. The core PCE index, which excludes food and energy costs, rose 0.3 percent. The gains were the largest since April's. In current dollar terms, unadjusted for inflation, incomes rose 0.4 percent, below the 0.5 percent forecast by Wall Street economists. Spending in current dollars rose 0.3 percent, just half the 0.6 percent growth expected. In July, incomes were flat while current-dollar spending rose 1 percent, the most since October. Real spending rose 0.9 percent in July. In August, private sector wages and salaries increased $20.3 billion after falling $16.4 billion in July. Payrolls at manufacturing firms rose about $500 million after falling $5.3 billion in July. Rental incomes rose $10 billion in August after falling $5.9 billion in July. In real, inflation-adjusted terms, spending on durable goods rose 1.5 percent in August after soaring 5.4 percent in July. Spending on nondurable goods was flat after rising 0.2 percent in July. Spending on services fell 0.1 percent in August after rising 0.3 percent in July. ------------------------------------------------------------