WASHINGTON -- Consumer spending dropped in September by the largest amount in four years, while incomes suffered because of Hurricane Ike.
The Commerce Department reported Friday that personal spending fell by 0.3 percent last month, the biggest decline since June of 2004. That followed flat readings in both July and August, contributing to the worst quarterly performance in 28 years.
Incomes showed a 0.2 percent rise in September, just half of the August increase, a slowdown that partly reflected the adverse effects of Hurricane Ike along the Gulf Coast. The storm cut into rental payments and earnings from businesses affected by the rough weather and its aftermath.
The September spending decline was slightly worse than
economists expected and confirmed that the economy hit a wall in the third
quarter because of the weakness in consumer spending, which accounts for
two-thirds of total economic activity.
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