LONDON (ShareCast) - Stocks are down slightly on a government report that consumers are saving rather than spending.
The Commerce Department said personal saving as a percentage of income rose to 6.9% in May from 5.6% in April - a 15 year high.
May
personal income surged 1.4%, much higher than the 0.3% rise expected and against a 0.5% increase in April. The report also revealed a 0.3% rise in May spending after a 0.1% decline in April, in line with expectations.
Meanwhile, the University of Michigan reported a rise in consumer sentiment in June, against expectations of a flat reading.
Across the markets, the Dow Jones (news) is down 28 points to 8444 with the Nasdaq (NASDAQ: news) flat at 1828. The S&P is down 1 point.
Homebuilder KB Home reported a second-quarter loss of $1.03 per share, which was not as bad as last year but much worse than expected.
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