Consumer Spending Rises in August

Consumer personal spending rose 0.4% in August as incomes improved, the Commerce Department said Friday.

The gain was greater than economists’ forecasts of a 0.3% increase, Bloomberg reported.

Personal incomes rose 0.5%, the biggest gain this year, Commerce said. Economists had forecast a 0.2% increase.

A rise in consumer spending could increase demand for new factory goods and the trucking shipments that get them to stores.