Economics
U.S. Consumer Spending Powers Ahead Despite Inflation Pickup
- Personal outlays rose a larger-than-forecast 1.3% in October
- Inflation gauge followed by Fed posts biggest gain since 1990
This article is for subscribers only.
American consumers -- the U.S. economy’s main engine -- showed little hesitation on spending last month despite the fastest inflation in three decades, setting up the economy for a year-end growth spurt.
Purchases of goods and services, unadjusted for changes in prices, increased 1.3%, the most since March, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Even after accounting for higher prices, spending still exceeded projections in a sign that consumers started their holiday shopping early.