Americans' spending rose in May as saving slipped

June 18, 1981

Americans spent more and saved less in May, the Commerce Department said. Personal consumer spending was up 0.7 percent in the month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.8347 trillion. Personal saving, meanwhile, declined by $2.2 billion, or about 2 percent, to an adjusted annual rate of $100.7 billion.

One goal of the administration's economic program is to increase savings to make more money available f or investment that will make the economy more productive.