Consumer spending rose again in November 2013 at the fastest rate since June – the latest in string of good news about the economy.
The U.S. Department of Commerce reported that spending by consumers had jumped by .5% in November after a .4% gain in October. The Commerce Department reported that the gain was driven by consumers buying durable goods such as automobiles, furniture and appliances.
Economists and those in the business world closely watch consumer spending, which makes up about 70% of the United States economy.
The report on Monday follows a string of other positive reports in the month of December. The unemployment rate has dipped across the nation, housing prices have remained strengthened, builders’ confidence is on the rise and the gross domestic product grew by more than 4% in the third quarter of 2013.
The third quarter gross domestic product number is the best in more than two years. Most economists have warned that the rate of increase is likely to slow in the fourth quarter, which runs from October through December, as manufacturers slow the inventory building that began in the third quarter.
The unemployment rate also has dropped to 7%, a five-year low. There have been four straight months of job gains, President Barack Obama pointed out earlier this month.
All of this is good news for those in business school or thinking about attending. An improved economy should translate into more jobs and better-paying jobs in the coming year, if the upswing continues.
Even as spending increases, inflation – which often occurs with increases in buying – has remained under control. The Commerce Department reported that prices remained flat in November and that in the last year, prices have risen by just .9%.
According to ABC News, higher taxes and government spending cuts have been a drag on the economy. However, those headwinds are expected to lessen in 2014. Economists are forecasting about 2.5% growth in the economy in 2014, higher than the 1.8% growth that is expected in 2013.
“Jobs are growing, confidence is growing, households and asset values are climbing,” Paul Edelstein, director of financial economics at IHS Inc., told Bloomberg.
“There appears to be some sort of gathering momentum in the economy.”
