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Personal Saving Rate Plunges From 5.5% To 5.0% As July Energy Expenditures Soar
July personal income and expenditures were quite surprising in that while many were expecting the drop in the market to force consumer saving to upshift (lower spending than income), not only was this not true, but expenditures spiked by 1 whole percent from -0.2% to 0.8%, on expectations of 0.5%, even as Personal Income came in line with expectations of 0.3%, up from a revised 0.2% (concurrent with extensive prior data revisions). This was the biggest difference between a monthly change in income and spending since October 209. The net result was a plunge in the savings rate from 5.5% to 5.0%. And while on the surface this would be good news, as in Americans are spending again, a quick look at the PCE components indicates that virtually the entire surge is due to a spike in Energy goods and services. In other words, the entire spike in spending was to... pay for gas and associated energy expenses. Which makes sense: in June this was a drop of -4.5%, it is only logical that the subsequent jump in Brent and WTI forced American savings to drop. All in all: in July Americans continued to max out their credit cards to pay for gas. As for the income side, transfer payments as a % of spending refuse to budge: thank you Uncle Sam.
The source for the spike in PCE:
Transfer Payments:
Monthly difference between Spending and Income:
And the Savings Rate:
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SAUDI ARABIA THANKS YOU FOR THE CONTRIBUTIONS !!
You are welcome
meanwhile
Obama to name Princeton's Alan Krueger to lead the (CEA) Council of Economic Advisors (replaces Goolsbee who replaced Romer) he cut his teeth the Rubin Clinton administration.
This is his seminal work on employment published in 1997
OBSERVATIONS AND CONJECTURES ON THE
U.S. EMPLOYMENT MIRACLE
overview here
http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/16/business/economic-scene-a-new-look-at-...
soruce document
http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/63963/observationsconj00kr...
more background here (1993)
http://www.nytimes.com/1993/08/22/weekinreview/conversations-david-card-...
Oh, and he was Timmay's chief economist here's a candid phot of the two
http://www2.pictures.gi.zimbio.com/Timothy+Geithner+Alan+Krueger+Geithne...
Is this Obama's big idea for jobs?
from April 2010
Unemployment peaked, just have to use one of the FED's super slide rulers.
Oh, and Roubini endorses the choice
http://twitter.com/#!/Nouriel
I love the "endorses the choice" parade. I remember when Geithner was announced... people lining up to proclaim it a good choice. People know where their bread is buttered, that's for sure.
I junked you just for knowing that!
Sweet, "Peak Unemployment"! Ahh, where's the hockeystick graph to illustrate the... or maybe not. At some point won't the sheeple get sick of hearing that things are getting better while they are getting the shaft?
I saw that. Yet another academic fuckwad to "fix" things.
Yes, back in 1997 it all seemed exactly that: A Miracle. Thanx to the money printing fueled perpetual motion machine, there was little fuss or muss. The delusion of boundless wealth without sacrifice or production (eeeeek!) was in full swing and everyone, PhD's included, was partaking of the Kool Aid. And they patted themselves on the back every single day : "Goldilocks!" "Great Moderation!" "Titillatingly irrational exuberance!"
boundless wealth without sacrifice or production
Intellectual dishonesty and academic duplicity is a growth industry.
In USA, savings = bad and economy is collapsing
In China, savings = good and economy is growing
Exactly. Why do US economists insist that Americans be under water with debt to make the economy grow?
If in the tl;dr camp.
Short version is this: Nanny state regulations and taxes strangles the ability of workplaces to hire people, comparison used is Europe versus the US.
Why the examination is pointless: Europe and North America are hardly relevant when attempting to create employment models anymore because the largest employers is the state. If the model were to be offered as a capitalist abstract, comparing India to Brazil would yeild something worth looking at. Otherwise, the arguement, data and conclusions are driven by the legacy of a past empire that poorly manages it's own affairs currently. IOW: the entire arguement is a fictional strawman with ALOT of red herrings.
Please not another princeton guy.
"Priceton, Hardvard, Yale... bullets, bombs and banks"
What about MIT?
Do they keep this thing up to date?
http://bpp.mit.edu/
.
We should be thanking them for continuing to accept the dollar!
They should thank us for allowing them to use it.
Your troll-fu remains unsurpassed.
Maybe all those people are no longer saving in traditional bank accounts, but buying bullion instead?
Yes, this is the case, but it would be nice to know the numbers. Do private gold dealers have to report sales like a bullion bank? If so, how often?
*
Why save in a bank at near 0%? Only keep a bit in a bank account for checking ability, other than that theres no further reason to have a bank account.
That and the fact bank accounts require a credit rating.
Maybe it's a signal on bankruptcies in addition to LIBOR locking up.
Buy a safe at homedepot, and keep any cash in dedicated expense envelopes. Buy PMs with the rest.
Those aren't safes. Those are merely suggestions.
There is no point buying a cheap or even a median quality safe, unless it's a decoy.
Less than 14 gauge steel? CRAP
Electronic push button entry? CRAP
No relocker? CRAP
Bolts can be tapped in with a hammer? CRAP
Less than 500 lbs? CRAP.
Sorry, any safe will ever do is buy you time. A safe is a way out of date concept. The only reason I would use a safe is from a fire perspective.
Case in point:
Father's business was robbed. They had a 6 foot tall, tear gas filled doors SAFE.
Air chisel got right in. A safe will only buy you time. Any determined thief will get into a safe. Just a matter of time.
Easiest way to get into a safe is to hold a gun to the head of one of the offspring of the safe's owner.
Safes are pretty easy to get into when you know the combination.
pods
pods @10:21,
Safes do exactly as intended, as a PART of your security.
An alarm system,silent, and independent from your telephone service,will get safe breakers caught 90% of the time, unless your an idiot, and do not have it anchored securely, and or so heavy they cannot move it.
I strongly suggest all 3.
Oh I agree Dos. A safe will eliminate a certain part of threats, mainly low level thieves.
But a determined thief/robber will get in. Whether that is defeating the countermeasures or simply bypassing them as I stated above. Any an all security systems can be defeated. You just limit the type of thief who will be able to do so.
With things getting more violent, the chances of encountering a thief who has little value for the lives of your loved ones increases.
One of the best systems involves a yappy dog and a Fila.
Yappy dog alerts you, and a Fila will eliminate any threat that is not armed.
pods
A $15,000.00 savings account at JP Morgan Chase will net you a cool $3.00 per year in interest.
Why, you can buy yourself a whole 12 pack of pop at Walgreen's IF they're having a good sale.
Gold & silver doesn't pay any interest, and you can't eat it (or drink it).
Keep the rest safe with Tony
http://www.hark.com/clips/msnfjmvnrq-banks-get-knocked-off-no-one-knocks-off-tony
Edit: So the 99ers who have no benefits anymore are dipping into saving to buy gas?
That's a good point.
Anyone of average smarts understands the idea of a hedge and capital preservation.
If savings are in traditional bank accounts AND the money is loaned out to investments, then that is a good thing.
Expanding the money supply and increasing deficits mean more overhead, which is negative for the economy. But good for the financial criminals and politicians, in the short run.
Energy is the only currency that matters. TPTB know this and they know that the percieved cost of energy by the sheep could easily break the current social structure. Interesting times indeed. Wage parity with the world may not be as far away as most think. Local economies will cetainly benefit as the cost of refined liquid fuel increases, so I guess that is a good thing. Any predictions on how long it will be until states with abundant natural resources tell the rest of the American states to piss off?
Got to keep the Spice flowing.
What kinds of things would have to happen first? The US would need to break apart, would it not? "We" would repudiate foreign debt, dissolve the union, end the dollar (all good things, from where I sit). I think the opposite happens, however; Consolidation of countries and consolidation of currencies.
Bullshit, nothing has to "happen". If a state with natural resources has an immediate need to use those resources (say a natural disaster or social unrest) then those resources simply will not flow out of the state. What are the other states or any federal agencies really going to do? The U.S. is already a volunteer military. One that is stretched thin and, quite frankly, tired on many levels. But I think we agree - all good things at the end of the day. You know what they say in the RE business - location, location, location.
Remember, in a healthy economy posession is still nine tenths of the law. During a crisis, it is the law.
but that state doesn't really control those natural resources, does it? I mean don't those natural resources simply go out to the market sold to the highest bidder? Say, for example, that Texas wants to stop the flow (using the other poster's metaphor) doesn't Texas almost need to declare independence and "nationalize" their natural resources? Which was the point of my post... lots of things need to happen first, I think.
Unless these international energy companies are using robots to mine and recover those resources (which admittedly some of them are) then they are employing people in those sates. The people living there will have the untimate say - especially in Texas where many also serve in the National Guard. Again, let me qualify the statement by saying nothing "official" or "announced" has to happen. These resources will simply start going unaccounted for. Ever hear of the old saying "fell off the truck". Lots of things fell off the truck during the depression and the rescession of the 70's. People are people, I expect nothing less.
What does 5.5% to 5.0% count as in terms of capital? If in the trillions I think we'll be looking at LIBOR going into lockjaw mode. Although the rules keep changing on the capitalization requirements for banks and fractional reserve requirements.
Otherwise that's a signal for banks getting the kick in the head again.
Wow! Just what we needed: zombie consumers living paycheck to paycheck forced to shell out more for necessities and save less.
But in an economy where we measure success by the size of your shopping bag, and your waistline, rather than anything being produced, we can declare a certain measure of vitory this morning.
In a dream vision, the Wall Streeters, banksters and Fed officials can for one day feel like they see yuppies walking the streets again, swaggering in their tassled loafers......what a wonderful dream!
Savings rate plunging=got to dip into last of savings to get by.
Or tack the purchases onto revolving credit cards... The Merican Way!
I know a lot of guys driving big trucks 60 miles to a job that is still paying 1990 wages... and they have lost medical bennies...
Lunch is a Big Gulp and a Slim Jim...
They saw their daddy doing it and they are still living the dream... Doing what their daddy did and doing it with a jaw full of snuff, YeeHaaw...
How is this going to end?
Gotta have the big late-model truck, that is key in Rural America. Preferably with appropriate talismanic brand names/slogans displayed ("Polaris"/"Arctic Cat"/"Fox Racing"/"Harley Davidson"/"U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps Retired"/"Monster Energy Drink" etc. etc.) Loud pipes. Gotta be a big man. $0 down, 0% financing for 96 months. We have gone totally FUBAR, and people are enjoying the last drops of juice from the rind while they can.
While manipulating the markets to keep them afloat, one of the collateral effects is that the oil price also goes higher, on the expectation of a future growth that indeed will never materialize. Congrats uncle Ben.
Oil price...we havent seen anything yet just wait till the Syria/Iran war kicks off by early fall.
Syrian Rebels will fight both the Syrian Army and Iran’s Takavaran. Nato and America will sit this one out.
Yup...
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre77r2cq-us-israel-iran-nuclear/
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre77r1i9-us-syria-iran-nato/
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/28/140013639/iran-warns-of-crisis-in-the-regi...
http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/08/27/Syria-on-radar-as-WMD-source...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/patrick-galey/israel-lebanon-oil_b_939498....
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2011/08/25/3089119/lull-over-rockets-fro...
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre77p4qx-us-egypt-israel/
Any chance there will be a nuclear "accident" in Iran which make the entire region a glass wasteland with a couple oil pumps on it for Asia and the west? Just saying- seems like an obvious "solution". < sarc off >
Bicycles will become popular once more as energy costs increase.
Cycling during the Seventies: A History of US Bicycling in the 1970's
ha! Good luck with the zombies!
bycicles... sure
Hey! I just put some air in the tires of my 1974 Schwinn LeTour yesterday. Still rides like a dream and built to last by Americans back when we made this stuff right here.
No bicycles here in Ft. Wayne, can't afford 'em. People are walking down the highway. Between the cardboard sign people and all the people walking, you've really got to be careful driving now.
China better start building sturdy bicycles that will accomodate 350 pounders...
Between my employer-provided bus pass & my commuter bicycle, I only have to fill up my 20+ year old (paid for) car about once a month. I ride when the weather is decent and I don't have to haul too much. There is even a microbrewery on the way that fills up growlers. Great way to enhance exercise = haul 2 full growlers up the hill.
it would be interesting to know the actual barrels & kilowatts consumed vs. dollars
"Shelled" out. question is: are we paying more but using less or is actual energy consumption increasing?
We're almost certainly paying more and using less. It's downright depressing to compare where I am today to where my parents were 20 years ago. It doesn't matter that my car and appliances are twice as efficient because gas and electricity are four times as expensive. My parents had cable and telephone and could still save, yet I have neither and had to stop saving just to keep my head above water. About the only thing I have that they didn't is a computer, but that's an awful lot of blame to dump on a single inanimate object. Work constantly pays less and less while fucking everything costs more because we have to support a parasite class of executives and lawyers and bankers who have half of this stupid country convinced of their divine right to rule.
Sounds like you're convinced of your right to former wage levels/standard of living... in defiance of gravity and the ability of the rest of the developing world to work for pennies on the dollar... "that's the sound of inevitability"
And it sounds like you've bought into the religious dogma that affirms your right to collect all of the pay for doing none of the work. This rent-seeking attitiude is exactly why the economy is so screwed up and is likely to become even more so. What a world we live in, where the execubot/politico/bankster middleman layabout can wreak untold chaos on the economy that will take decades for everyone else who actually works for a living to dig their way out of and still feel entitled to pontificate about entitlements and "free" market competition.
I didn't make any express statements on myself... impliedly, I'm subject to the same gravity as you.
PS, making wild generalizations probably isn't a good way to endear yourself to those capable of implementing fruitful change... good to incite the senses no doubt, but piss poor at making a legitimate, well reasoned, and moral underpinning to your efforts.
PS 2, when the gravy train leaves for the many, it will probably also leave for the few... the true parasites will leave to create their new victims abroad. In many ways, the matter is self correcting. Although, I strongly suspect many of the victims (including those who are actually productive) will pack up and move as well... hopefully they don't pick the same spot.
Where is FREE Iraqi OIL? Why the heck they burn 1T$ then?
Well, they probably selling it back to us at the Market
price, so US taxpayers taxed twice.
Wasn't it about WMDs or spreading democracy or something like that? Now you are telling me it was really about free oil after all? Then let's drill baby drill !
MoneyWise, @09:04
Not figured it out yet?, WE dont reap the spoils of war, we spend our dollars to rebuild what we just blew to hell.
And then the (in this case)Iraqi's,cut a deal with China, and Russia, and sell their oil to them.
GOSPEL.
Great Good news Market to go up and up
The good old USA built on Debt,and the BS out of WDC
Robots don't care about investigating the headline numbers.. BTFD Chair Satan says GO!
Back to $87 as Europe is saved!!! Long live the ponzi!
You know what is the problem?
Everyone is looking at WTI, and in reality it doesn't
used for Gasoline. You have to look at Brent Oil
and it's at $112.14 now. See what I mean, Real Oil price
is $112/b and not $87/b
Bitchez don't know about my basket trading..
Energy isnt JUST gasoline, pull the microscope back a bit MyopiaMan and see a lot of the country has been in record heat wave for 2 months.
Lots of superheated air emanating from Gov. Goodhair.
Electric bills are killing folks here in phoenix. The utilities have worked in a half dozen 5% & 6% increases in the last few years. Now people with older, not-well-insulated homes are receiving $500 to $600 monthly bills.
The news has a story every night about people going bankrupt over energy bills, or old people dying in their hot-box trailers after the electric is turned off.
Now the utilities are asking the regulators for another 6% increase.
Add in all the record-breaking heat this summer and your talking about some big money!
Judging the world by what your eyeballs see : small business closures are proliferating again in NYC. Rents and expenses too high, revenues not able to meet them. Phase 1 in 08 was all bout rot at the top (mega banks, WS firms). Now it's about rot at the core.
The RENT is TOO DAMN HIGH!
This is deflation were only hard assets retain price ... kinda, sorta like a cork on the water.
is odd because July gasoline was down 2.8% and consumption was lowest for any July in past decade.
Some of the gasoline demand destruction is being hidden by mounting exports. And an arbitrage between the way EIA and API report their numbers.
But reality is there is real demand destruction in gasoline.
thanks lizzy, was wondering about that. more squeezing blood from a stone it seems.
Think rising costs for electricity and heat wave across the country. Utility bills are devestatingly high here in Phoenix, and I imagine its the same in Tejas, St Louis, the upper midwest, etc...
if the bills are truly $500+ monthly, it's surprising more folk don't opt for solar - it's a desert, folk might want to plan for adapting to the environment. . . even with household savings depleting, surely there's some financing option to invest in getting off the utility merry-go-round?
There is a good sized push towards solar. The 'green' movement subsidizes alot of solar startups, but the cash required upfront deters the people who need it most.
People in houses that are roughly 95' and later have much better insulation than anything older.
Younger people in newer house are more likely to invest in solar and wait the 10-15 years it will take for the system to make money.
July was extremely hot in the eastern half of the US. my electric bill is up 50% from july, 2010 due simply to the weeks of 90+ heat.
Enroll in budget Billing, - very convenient,
you going to be paying same amount of $$$ whole year around.
that wasnt the point. just saying my electric bill went from 110 to 165 in 1 year, due simply to the heat. that spike in energy was simply due to the extra usage of AC, not pent up consumer demand or additional gas usage.
Right if you just 'budget' your billing, the division process removes all higher prices. HUH??
Eastern half? What about the western half? Everyone in heat wave.
We don't need no stinking oil. Candles bitxhezzzz.
CNBC:
Consumer Spending Jumps on Strong Car Sales in Julyyes, lining up perfectly with the negative durable goods spending number....
Something is amiss, or perhaps we understimate the wearhouse capacity and the true impact of channel stuffing?
Oh well, thats the Clown Kazoo CNBC's only job now, sift thru and pump up any possible positive. Although the govt is buying most of the cars itself, nevermind all that we have to somehow get people consuming stocks.
SPEND YOU MOTHERFUCKERS SPEND!
Sacrifice yourselves to save our economy.
And the market answers with...oil +$2 per barrel. Brilliant!
Cdad, the US fincial markets are a rigged casino, dont try to make sense out of the TRIBE.
Brilliant advice. Halt all critical thinking. You sound like Gordon Charlop...who said, right before the last market collapse, to "Buy them [equities] blind."
Legal Looting in the name of Growing the Economy. What a shell game this is. No real plans anymore, just hand jobs between the Govt Agencies and the Banksters.
Hell, the US is operating sans a budget... There is no plan...TPTB are winging it and playing for one more day in the sun...every fucking day!
Glad to see the "recovery" is in tact. lol
Nevermind all that, we can spin it, and have another stock party for today and thats all that really matters anyway.
When Chinamart margins reach zero in the US will the company lay off workers, reduce the quality of product or just raise prices. Appreciation of the RMB / US$ should be monitored closely.
I would of thought with all the Irene hysteria, hype, and propaganda about its potential, the savings rate would of plunged to -10 with everyone stampeding to Wallyworld to get emergency essentials.
Heck, I saw an emergency three day pack at Home Depot for $40 that has water, ponchos, and some granola bars. Nice marketing ploy for the sheeple. Bet those are gone too.
Personal spending was up alot on the very things that require expensive oil.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/44311824
A balance sheet recession paying down debt and fighting inflation at the same time as savings are slowly used up.
Bloomberg news thinks this is great news for the "recovery" myth they have been touting for 3 years.
Tyler,
You are on the list on one particular reader.
http://www.stocktiming.com/Monday-DailyMarketUpdate.htm
The stimulative effect of heat waves in the age of central air-conditioning.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25wEd_qNX9s
Ber-shankie laughing his ass off at Zero Hedge. The Zombie's are completely under his control. Afraid the ZH theme song needs to be: "Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage."
Wish it were not so.....but the facts just have no traction vs. the "good story".
Um, so you're saying Bernanke is calling the shots? Speaking of being in a cage, you might want to get out more. Bernanke doesn't make any decisions, he just follows orders. Wake up. Here's the deal: The Fed is a privately held banking cartel, with the primary shareholders being a group of families that own shares in a select group of New York-based banks. Bernanke is an employee of the Fed. Get it yet?
And the Sheriff of Nottingham worked for King John.
But he decided whether to use a thumb screw on you or just to tie your bag of gonads to the saddle of a perky horse.
It doesn't matter who took your money. It only matters that it's gone.
Greek Market up 16%
Time to put on shorts...oh, yeah...you can't.
But, But, according to MSM:
"Economists said the report was a strong sign that the economy rebounded in July after anemic growth in the first half of the year"
They didn't say ANYTHING about energy prices - LOL
So when will the leaflets that describe how great the economy is doing, be air dropped?
The report you show here shows a decline 0.1% in spending on durable goods. CNBS says spending on durable goods increased by 2%, all due to auto sales. And you can thank Obama for saving the auto industry.
No QE3, which the whole world was hinging on Friday....nevermind all that all is well again.
We don't have QE3... We have QT3... and in 'on the qt'... a wink and a nod...
Ben is hiding QE in plain view...
Why save? Who needs savings when they get Free food stamps, Free unemployment benefits, Free houses......and so on.
Shame those non-savers are missing out on the 0.0000 interest rate on savings.
Plus, the money you save today will be worth less, much less next year.
This is an interesting discussion about the short-term drivers of July's personal consumption growth. I think it's all true: consumers saved less to spend more on gas, cars (some pent-up demand after the tsunami), plus air conditioners to beat the heat wave.
The point about no real personal disposable income growth is very important. Looing at August and ahead we are not going to get consumption growth without income growth in a low confidence environment.
The other thing worth noticing is that behind the more volatile goods consumption, the real steady driver of personal consumption growth over the past year has been health care and insurance. This is the demographic shift at work, and without real disposable income growth it can only come out of savings or other kinds of consumption. With low confidence, it will come out of the latter.
Of course the WSJ does NOT factor the offsetting savings rate data into their increased consumer spending articles.
WSJ = What A Fucking Joke (WAFJ).
...don't forget Air conditioning
Here in phx it costs about 350-450 for your average house to be kept at 80 degrees.
Ease up on the sensationalism to preserve credibility:
The savings rate hardly "plunged" - declined yes, but plunged, no.
Yes, according to John Williams SHADOW STATS.COM.
Inflation is at 11.2%, That IS if you eat, or buy fuel,but who does THAT?.
Picky,picky,picky!!!
Just thinking out loud here….not sure where I am going with this thought. In 1963, a gallon of gas cost ~$0.30. Today, those same three silver dimes would get you – once you cashed them in – a little over 2 gallons (based on this local area’s current prices). I wonder how the incomes compare. My gut says that incomes now exceed what would be calculated based on inflation alone. Anyone have those numbers?
anyone else not able to view table 9 on the BEA site...why am i not surprised they are trying to hide this data