US Personal Spending Rises 0.5% in April

2026-05-28 12:37 By Joana Ferreira 1 min. read

US personal spending increased by 0.5% month-on-month in April 2026, or $111.1 billion, slowing from an upwardly revised 1% gain in March and matching market expectations.

Spending on goods rose by $44.0 billion, primarily driven by a $28.8 billion surge in gasoline and other energy goods amid soaring energy prices tied to the Middle East conflict.

Additional gains were seen in food and beverages ($9.5 billion), other nondurable goods ($8.2 billion), and recreational goods and vehicles ($8.1 billion), while motor vehicle spending fell by $9.2 billion.

Spending on services climbed by $67.2 billion, led by housing and utilities ($22.7 billion), recreation services ($12.1 billion), food services and accommodations ($11.3 billion), and final expenditures of nonprofit institutions ($9.9 billion).

Meanwhile, inflation-adjusted consumer spending edged up 0.1% in April, slowing from an upwardly revised 0.3% increase in March.



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US Personal Spending Rises 0.5% in April
US personal spending increased by 0.5% month-on-month in April 2026, or $111.1 billion, slowing from an upwardly revised 1% gain in March and matching market expectations. Spending on goods rose by $44.0 billion, primarily driven by a $28.8 billion surge in gasoline and other energy goods amid soaring energy prices tied to the Middle East conflict. Additional gains were seen in food and beverages ($9.5 billion), other nondurable goods ($8.2 billion), and recreational goods and vehicles ($8.1 billion), while motor vehicle spending fell by $9.2 billion. Spending on services climbed by $67.2 billion, led by housing and utilities ($22.7 billion), recreation services ($12.1 billion), food services and accommodations ($11.3 billion), and final expenditures of nonprofit institutions ($9.9 billion). Meanwhile, inflation-adjusted consumer spending edged up 0.1% in April, slowing from an upwardly revised 0.3% increase in March.
2026-05-28
US Personal Spending Matches Expectations
US personal spending rose by 0.9% month-on-month in March 2026, reaching $195.4 billion, accelerating from an upwardly revised 0.6% increase in February and matching market expectations. The increase was primarily driven by stronger goods spending ($132.6 billion), particularly in gasoline and other energy goods (+$81.3 billion), motor vehicles and parts (+$17.6 billion), other non-durable goods (+$9.9 billion), food and beverages (+$6.9 billion), and recreational goods and vehicles (+$6.3 billion). Spending on services also increased to $62.9 billion, led by health care (+$21.3 billion), financial services and insurance (+$14.6 billion), transportation services (+$6.7 billion), and other services (+$6.6 billion). Meanwhile, inflation-adjusted consumer spending edged down to 0.2%, from an upwardly revised 0.3% in February.
2026-04-30
US Personal Spending Rises 0.5% in February
US personal spending grew 0.5% month-over-month in February 2026, totaling $103.2 billion, up from a downwardly revised 0.3% increase in January and in line with expectations. The rise was fueled by higher goods spending (+$58.7 billion), particularly in motor vehicles and parts (+$32.6 billion), nondurable goods (+$9.1 billion), and clothing and footwear (+$8.7 billion). Spending on services also climbed (+$44.5 billion), driven by healthcare (+$15.7 billion), financial services and insurance (+$10.4 billion), and transportation services (+$9.8 billion). However, inflation-adjusted consumer spending inched up just 0.1% after stagnating in January.
2026-04-09