Americans Cut Spending For First Time In 20 Months

[Purveyor]

WASHINGTON — Americans cut their spending in June for the first time in nearly two years after seeing their incomes grow by the smallest amount in nine months. The latest data offered a troubling sign for an economy that is adding few jobs and barely growing.

Consumer spending dropped 0.2% in June, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. It was the first decline since September 2009.

Some of the decline was the result of food and energy prices moderating after sharp increases earlier this year. When excluding spending on those items, consumer spending was flat.

Still, consumers also cut back on big-ticket items, such as cars and appliances, which help drive growth.

MORE...

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/2011-08-02-consumer-spending-tuesday_n.htm

[Turbineguy]

1. This is because of the uncertainty

created by republicans.

[Warpy]

2. Most people are no longer uncertain

They certainly know that the Republicans have made a bad situation much, much worse by sucking money out of an economy already on life support.

Shuttered stores should outnumber the ones in business by election day, 2012.

[TheWraith]

3. You know none of the cuts happen until at least 2013, right? nt

[jsamuel]

4. you realize that we need and needed more stimulus a while ago, right? nt

[dixiegrrrrl]

5. I do not believe that this is the first time spending has been cut.

I also do not believe the way the government reports figures is at all realistic.

We cannot have the high unemployment rate we have, which is now halfway thru the 3rd year and climbing, without spending having been curtailed before this.

EVERY month and quarter the Government puts out optimistic reports and then " revises" them quietly, downward, the following month.

Note: when they did not count food and energy, spending was flat.

[barb162]

6. Revisions.,. economist were surprised at the low employment

for the month of ----. Fill in whatever month you want. The economists are always surprised at the lousy economic data coming out. It's been time they should have revised their inaccurate models. Consumers can see what the numbskull economists can't figure out.