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American consumers, their confidence shaken by war and higher energy costs, have put a lid on spending since the year began, the government reported Friday.
Personal spending in February held at an annual rate of about $7.49 trillion for the second month in a row, the Commerce Department said. It was the first time since December 1990-January 1991, when the U.S. was in recession, that spending failed to rise for so long.
Also Friday, the University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index fell to 77.6 in March from 79.9 in February. It was the third straight month of decline, and the lowest level since August 1993.
Adjusted for inflation, personal spending fell 0.4 percent after a 0.2 percent January drop.
