Shoppers walk through the Valley Mall in Halfway, Maryland. U.S. consumers increased their spending by 1.9 percent last month, a dose of support for an economy struggling to emerge from the grip of a pandemic that has held back a recovery and kept roughly 27 million people jobless. The July gain marked the third straight monthly increase in consumer spending, the primary driver of the U.S. economy, but represented a slowdown from the previous two months. Friday’s report from the Commerce Department also showed that income increased by 0.4 percent in July after two months of declines. The Conference Board, a business research group, reported this week that consumer confidence has tumbled to its lowest level since 2014.

Source: The Standard August 28, 2020 14:37 UTC