Originally published on June 30, 2019
One of my big themes this year is that low gas prices can hide a multitude of economic sins. This morning's data on personal income and spending confirms that the consumer side of the economic ledger is doing OK.
Nominal personal income rose +0.4%, and nominal personal spending rose +0.5%. After adjusting for inflation, the numbers are +0.3% and +0.2%, respectively. As a result, the positive trends for both continue:
On a YoY basis, we can see that spending slightly leads income (similarly point to the way consumption leads