Consumer spending increased 5.2 percent in June from the month before while personal income slipped 1.1 percent. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BCA), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, attributes these shifts to consumer response to the spread of COVID-19.

Personal income’s June decline was a fraction of what the BEA reported in May, when personal income slipped 4.4 percent. The $222.8 billion decrease in personal income in June can be attributed to a decrease in government social benefits to persons as payments made to individuals from federal economic recovery programs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic continued, but at a lower level than in May. Partially offsetting the decrease in other government social benefits were increases in compensation of employees and proprietors’ income as portions of the economy continued to reopen in June. Unemployment insurance benefits, based primarily on unemployment claims data from the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, also increased in June.

Consumer spending growth in June softened from the 8.4-percent growth registered one month earlier. June’s $623 billion increase in consumer spending reflected an increase of $273.7 billion in spending for goods and a $362.1 billion increase in spending for services. Within goods, the leading contributor to the increase was spending for clothing and footwear, while within services, the leading contributors to the increase were spending for health care as well as food services and accommodations. Within health care, both hospital and outpatient services increased, based on volume data for hospital services and outpatient visits as well as credit card data.

More information on consumer spending and personal income can be found here.