Personal income fell 0.1% in August and personal spending rose 0.2%, according to the seasonally adjusted report from the Commerce Department Friday.
The 0.1% decline in personal income was the largest since July 2009 when it fell 0.3%. The core personal consumption expenditure deflator rose 0.1% month over month and 1.6% year over year.
Overall, the PCE deflator was up 0.2% in August and up 2.9% over the year.
The median estimates of economists polled by Thomson Reuters were for a 0.1% rise in personal income, a 0.2% increase in consumption, and a 0.2% rise in the core PCE deflator.
Revised numbers for July showed a 0.1% income increase, a 0.7% spending rise, and a 0.2% core deflator increase.
A number of other figures in the report were down to levels in the year after the financial crisis erupted.
The personal savings rate was 4.5%, down from 4.7% in July. The 4.5% rate was the smallest since November 2009, when it was 4.3%. The $519.3 billion savings total was the smallest level since December 2009.
Consumers’ real disposable income, adjusted for inflation and taxes, was down 0.3% in August, the biggest fall since a 0.5% drop in October of 2009. Consumers’ real spending was unchanged in August.
