The numbers: Consumer spending rose by a scant 0.2% in February, a big slowdown from prior month that suggests households may have gotten more cautious as strains on the economy intensify.
Analysts polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.3% increase. The surge in sales in January, meanwhile, was revised up to 2%.
Incomes rose 0.3% in February,
the government said Friday.
Big picture: The surge in spending in January was widely viewed as a one-off that was unlikely to last. Americans are still coping with high inflation and rising interest rates, and they are saving a bit more amid talk of recession.
Households are still spending enough money to keep the economy out of recession, however. Most Americans who want a job can find one and increasing wages have taken some of the sting out of inflation.
Market reaction: The Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA,
+0.43%
and S&P 500
SPX,
+0.57%
were set to open modestly higher in Friday trades.
