Consumers continue to show gains in their income. Personal income increased $43.9 billion, or 0.3%, and disposable personal income (DPI) increased $45.2 billion, or 0.4%, in January, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $48.1 billion, or 0.4%. In December, personal income decreased $5.5 billion, or less than 0.1%, DPI decreased $9.7 billion, or 0.1%, and PCE increased $6.5 billion, or 0.1%, based on revised estimates.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the increase in personal income in January was partly due to provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which affected government social benefit payments. Furthermore, personal income was boosted by cost-of-living adjustments to several federal transfer programs and by pay raises for civilian and military personnel.
Other key findings by the BEA:
- Private wages and salaries increased $14.8 billion.
- Government wages and salaries increased $0.6 billion, compared with an increase of $1.3 billion in December.
- Employer contributions for employee pension and insurance funds increased $1.9 billion in January, compared with an increase of $2.0 billion in December.