Real Consumer Spending 1.7% Above Dec. 2007

The BEA released its report today on "Personal Income and Outlays" for March, here are some highlights:

1. Real personal consumption spending in March set a new monthly record of $9.5 trillion (2005 dollars) in March, which is 1.7% and $156 billion above the pre-recession peak of $9.355 trillion in December 2007.   

2. Both real disposable personal income and real personal consumer spending increased by 2.7% in March from a year earlier.  

3. Annual inflation for Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) was 1.8% in March, and only 0.9% for the PCE excluding food and energy.  

4. The personal savings rate in March held steady at 5.5%, the same as February, and down slightly from 5.9% in January.