The personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy increased 2.8% from a year ago in March, the same as in February, the Commerce Department reported Friday. That was above the 2.7% estimate from the Dow Jones consensus.
| Month |
PCE Price Index Excluding Food and Energy |
| March 2023 |
2.8% |
| February 2023 |
2.8% |
| January 2023 |
2.7% |
Including food and energy, the all-items PCE price gauge increased 2.7%, compared with the 2.6% estimate.
Consumer spending and saving
Consumers showed that they are still spending despite the elevated price levels. Personal spending rose 0.8% on the month, a touch higher even than the 0.7% estimate though the same as February. Personal income increased 0.5%, in line with expectations and higher than the 0.3% increase the previous month.
The personal saving rate fell to 3.2%, down 0.4 percentage points from February and 2 full percentage points from a year ago as households dipped into savings to keep spending afloat.
| Month |
Personal Spending |
Personal Income |
Saving Rate |
| March 2023 |
0.8% |
0.5% |
3.2% |
| February 2023 |
0.8% |
0.3% |
3.6% |
| January 2023 |
1.8% |
0.6% |
4.7% |
Inflation details
Services prices increased 0.4% on the month while goods were up 0.1%, reflecting a swing in consumer prices as goods inflation dominated since the early days of the Covid pandemic. Food prices showed a 0.1% decline on the month while energy rose 1.2%.
On a 12-month basis, services prices are up 4% while goods have barely moved, increasing just 0.1%. Food is up 1.5% while energy has gained 2.6%.
| Category |
12-Month Change |
| Services |
4.0% |
| Goods |
0.1% |
| Food |
1.5% |
| Energy |
2.6% |
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