Highlights of the April 2020 personal income and spending report:
- Prior was -7.5%
Details:
- Personal income +10.5% vs -6.0% expected
- Prior personal income -2.2%
- PCE deflator m/m -0.5% vs -0.6% expected
- PCE deflator y/y +0.5% vs +0.5% expected
- PCE core deflator m/m -0.4% vs -0.3% expected
- PCE core deflator y/y +1.0% vs +1.1% expected
That personal income number is incredible. It speaks to the skew in additional unemployment benefits. The system was designed so workers would get an additional $600 per week. That put the income received at the national average. The thing is, the workers getting laid off weren't making average wages -- they were low-paid employees. So for many, not working has paid much better than working, some as much as double.
