Personal Income Slipped In August, Consumer Spending Basically Flat

By Mark Memmott

Published September 30, 2011 at 8:45 AM EDT

There was a 0.1 percent dip in personal income in August vs. July, the Bureau of Economic Analysis just reported. The Associated Press says that's the "poorest showing since a similar 0.1 percent drop in October 2009."

In addition, "disposable personal income" actually fell 0.3 percent after inflation.

Meanwhile, consumer spending edged up 0.2 percent — but was unchanged when inflation is factored in. Since consumers purchase about 70 percent of all goods and services, weakness in their demand ripples through the economy.

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Mark Memmott

Mark Memmott is NPR's supervising senior editor for Standards & Practices. In that role, he's a resource for NPR's journalists – helping them raise the right questions as they do their work and uphold the organization's standards.

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