US personal spending misses forecasts, core PCE prices ahead of consensus

(Sharecast News) - Personal spending in the US came in a tad shy of economists' forecasts for the month of February, despite a larger than expected rise in incomes. The latest data also showed that price gains were running faster than expected.

According to the US Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, personal incomes and spending rose by 0.8% and 0.4% month-on-month, respectively.

Consensus had been for increases of 0.4% and 0.5%, respectively.

The personal savings rate meanwhile jumped from 4.3% in January to 4.6% last month.

On the inflation front, the price deflator for personal consumption expenditures, rose by 0.3% over the month, as expected.

Core PCE on the other hand, which is the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, advanced by 0.4% (consensus: 0.3%).

That lifted the annual rate of increase in core PCE by one tenth of a percentage point versus the previous month to 2.8% (consensus: 2.7%).

Furthermore, the prior month's reading on core PCE prices had been revised up from 2.6% to 2.7%.

Headline PCE prices were up by 2.5% year-on-year, the same as in January and in line with forecasts.