Archive for October, 2012

Real Consumer Spending Picks Up in September

Published October 29, 2012 BEA News , Consumer Spending , Personal Income Leave a Comment
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Personal income increased 0.4 percent in September after increasing 0.1 percent in August. Wages and salaries, the largest component of personal income, increased 0.3 percent in September after increasing 0.1 percent in August. Government social benefits to persons turned up in September.

Current-dollar disposable personal income (DPI), after-tax income, increased 0.4 percent in September after increasing 0.1 percent in August.

Real DPI, income adjusted for taxes and inflation, remained flat in September after decreasing 0.3 percent in August.

Real consumer spending, spending adjusted for price changes, increased 0.4 percent in September after increasing 0.1 percent in August. Spending on nondurable goods rose 0.5 percent after increasing 0.4 percent, while spending on services increased 0.2 percent after decreasing 0.2 percent.

PCE (personal consumption expenditures) prices increased 0.4 percent in September, the same increase as in August. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index increased 0.1 percent in September, the same increase as in August.

Personal saving rate
Personal saving as a percent of DPI was 3.3 percent in September, compared with 3.7 percent in August.

To learn more about personal income and outlays, read the full report.

GDP Growth Picks up in Third Quarter

Published October 26, 2012 BEA News , GDP Leave a Comment
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Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 2.0 percent in the third quarter of 2012 after increasing 1.3 percent in the second quarter, according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Third-quarter highlights
The following contributed to the acceleration in real GDP growth:
• Consumer spending on goods accelerated, mainly reflecting an upturn in durable goods; spending on motor vehicles and parts turned up.
• Federal government spending increased, as national defense spending increased in the third quarter after decreasing in the second quarter.
• Inventory investment also contributed to the acceleration in economic growth. An upturn in nonfarm inventory investment was partly offset by a decline (larger than in the second quarter) in farm inventory investment, reflecting the effects of the drought in the Midwest on crop production.
• Residential housing investment accelerated, as single-family structures picked up.

Offsetting these contributions to faster economic growth, business investment turned down, as spending on equipment and software slowed and spending on nonresidential structures turned negative. Net exports also subtracted from growth; a downturn in exports was only partly offset by a downturn in imports.

Personal income and personal saving
The personal saving rate—saving as a percentage of disposable personal income—was 3.7 percent in the third quarter, compared with 4.0 percent in the second quarter.

Prices
Prices of goods and services purchased by U.S. residents accelerated in the third quarter, increasing 1.5 percent, following a 0.7 percent increase in the second quarter.

Energy prices turned up, while food prices turned down. Prices less food and energy rose 1.3 percent in the third quarter after rising 1.4 percent in the second quarter.

For more, here’s the full report.

U.S. Virgin Islands’ Economy Grew 2.9 Percent in 2010

Published October 15, 2012 BEA News Leave a Comment
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The economy of the U.S. Virgin Islands returned to growth in 2010, expanding 2.9 percent, according to new data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) largely reflected increases in the trade surplus, government spending, and construction.

GDP offers the most comprehensive picture of the territory’s economy. Although more timely indicators like employment, wages, and visitor arrivals are available, GDP looks at all aspects of the U.S. Virgin Islands’ economy, including prices, output, consumer spending, and trade.

For the first time, BEA calculated estimates of GDP by industry, compensation by industry, and detailed consumer spending for the territory. BEA also revised previous estimates for 2002 to 2009.

The 2.9 percent gain in 2010 followed a 5.9 percent decrease in 2009 and marked the first increase in economic activity since 2007. The island’s 2010 growth rate compares with 2.4 percent growth for the United States as a whole for the same period.

The oil refining industry continued to play a major role in the territory’s economy and accounted for the vast majority of imports and exports of goods. The territory’s expanded trade surplus contributed over 10 percentage points to overall GDP growth.

Imports declined more than exports, expanding the trade surplus. Exports add to GDP, while imports subtract from it. The increase in the trade surplus was partially offset by a decrease in private inventories, which subtracted 9 percentage points from overall GDP growth.

Real consumer spending in the U.S. Virgin Islands expanded 0.4 percent in 2010, driven largely by increases in health care services and “other” services, while spending on goods—especially durable goods—declined.

GDP by industry and compensation by industry
Taken together, private industries added 2.77 percentage points to overall growth in 2010, while government contributed 0.15 percentage point.

Services-producing industries were the primary source of overall growth in 2010. They contributed 3.52 percentage points to economic growth in 2010, the new estimates show. A decline in goods-producing industries largely reflected a decline in the oil refining industry.

The accommodations and amusement industry, including hotel and food services—along with other tourism-related services—continued to decline.

BEA plans to release estimates for 2011 in the spring of 2013. You can read the latest news release and tables here.

 

BEA Regional Data Used to Distribute Federal Funds to State, Local Governments

Published October 12, 2012 BEA News , Regional Leave a Comment
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Did you know that Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) regional economic statistics, such as the annual state personal income statistics released September 25, 2012, are used to allocate billions of dollars in federal funds to state and local governments?

In fiscal year 2011, more than $339 billion in federal funds were distributed under programs using U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis statistics in funding formulas.

Each year, BEA collects information and reports on the amounts distributed by federal programs using BEA regional economic statistics. BEA recently released reports detailing the allocation of amounts distributed in fiscal year 2011. The information can be found on BEA’s Web site under “Uses of the Regional Program Estimates”.

The use of BEA regional economic statistics in federal funding formulas is only one of the important uses of these data and is just one reason why the accuracy and timeliness of these statistics are so important.

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