Released: June 27, 2009

Consumer spending up even as more save

Source: Annys Shin, Washington Post (Free Registration)

Consumer spending edged up in May for the first time since February, new data show, as the government stimulus plan boosted incomes. But in a sign that Americans are not immediately spending all their extra cash, the national savings rate rose to a 15-year high.

The $787 billion spending plan Congress passed in February shaved payroll taxes, provided aid to the unemployed and eligible retirees, and offered other assistance. Those provisions were responsible for most of the 1.4 percent increase in personal income last month, the Commerce Department reported yesterday.

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