Gas, Interest Take Most Out of American Incomes Since 2014
- Fed tightening, oil-price rise increasingly threaten spending
- Precautionary saving may hit consumption too: Oxford Economics
A customer fills a vehicle with fuel at a gas station in Princeton, Illinois.
Photographer: Daniel Acker/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Interest payments have been eating up a growing share of American incomes this year amid aggressive Federal Reserve tightening. Now, rising oil prices are piling on, too.
Consumer spending on gasoline and interest combined accounted for 4.7% of US disposable income last month, the most since August 2014, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis figures published Friday. Interest payments alone, at 2.5% of disposable income, were the highest since September 2008.