WASHINGTON - In a report released on Thursday, the government revealed that consumer spending in the United States experienced a significant boost in July, marking the largest increase in six months. Simultaneously, the monthly inflation rates showed signs of deceleration. These findings further reinforce the prevailing belief that the U.S. central bank will maintain its current interest rates in the upcoming month.
In a recent announcement, the U.S. Commerce Department revealed that consumer spending, a key driver of the nation's economic activity, experienced a notable uptick of 0.8 percent in the previous month. In a recent development, the data for the month of June has undergone a slight revision, resulting in a modest increase of 0.6 percent. According to the report, there was a notable surge in economic momentum during the initial stages of the third quarter. The tight labor market is providing a boost to consumer spending. In the month of July, there was a notable increase in spending on both goods and services. According to recent data, spending on goods experienced a rise of 0.7 percent, while spending on services saw a slightly higher increase of 0.8 percent. This indicates a positive trend in consumer spending, suggesting a potential boost in economic activity.
In other news from the report, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which serves as a measure of inflation, experienced a 0.2 percent increase in the previous month, mirroring the gain observed in June. In the latest report, it has been revealed that food prices experienced a modest increase of 0.2 percent, while energy costs saw a slight uptick of 0.1 percent. Over the course of the past year, the PCE price index experienced a notable increase of 3.3 percent, surpassing the 3 percent annual growth observed in the previous month of June.
