August 31, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)
Food, clothing, and shelter see
different historical spending patterns
Since the mid 1930s, the U.S.
economy has been affected by wars, economic depressions and booms, technology advances,
changes in the labor force, and changes in population demographics. These factors, as well
as changes in consumer tastes and preferences, have influenced consumer spending habits.
[Chart data—TXT]
In 1935-36, over one third of total spending was allocated
to food, making food expenditures the largest portion of total spending. The share of
spending on food has consistently dropped, falling to less than half the 1935-36 value by
1996-97. Like food shares, spending allocated to apparel and related services has
decreased over time, accounting for about 1 in every 10 dollars in 1935-36 and dropping to
1 in every 20 dollars in 1996-97.
Unlike the decreasing shares allocated to food and clothing, the share spent on housing
has fluctuated, with the 1960-61 period representing the low of just under 30 percent and
the 1996-97 period representing the high of over 37 percent. Housing replaced food as the
largest portion of total spending by 1960-61.
These data are a product of the BLS Consumer
Expenditure Survey program. Additional information is available from "Consumer
Expenditure Survey: Quarterly Data from the Interview Survey, Third Quarter 1997:
Historical Spending Patterns," BLS Report 932.
Of interest
Spotlight on Statistics: National Hispanic Heritage Month
In this Spotlight, we take a look at the Hispanic labor force—including labor force participation, employment and unemployment, educational attainment, geographic location, country of birth, earnings, consumer expenditures, time use, workplace injuries, and employment projections.
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Read more »