Orders for durable goods and a private payroll report were surprisingly good.
However, sales of durable goods (washing machines and so forth) were unexpectedly weak in October, a sign of residual caution among households.
Consumption of durable goods such as cars and furniture plunged by 22.8%. Overall consumer spending dropped 3.5%.
A dip on Wall Street undermined sentiment, with declines in new U.S. home purchases and durable goods orders reminding investors that the economy would continue to struggle even after the war.
There is pent-up demand from postponement of purchases (especially of durable goods, where postponing replacing is feasible) and selling from inventory rather than from new production.
Spending on consumer durable goods like autos dropped precipitously in 1930.
Nearly all the growth in consumer spending came from durable goods like cars and electronic gadgets, which have benefited from government subsidies introduced last year.
Half of them say they have enough money for food and clothes but struggle to buy durable goods.