Consumer spending drops

U.S consumers cut their spending slightly during 2013, the first drop in overall spending in three years.

Average expenditures last year among “consumer units” – mostly families and singles – was $51,1000, down 0.7 percent from 2012, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Consumers increased their spending in only three areas – healthcare, housing and transportation – but those increases were minor: 2.1 percent for healthcare, 1.5 percent for housing and 0.1 percent for transportation.

At the same time, consumers decreased their spending on restaurants, entertainment, tobacco, alcohol and charitable contributions, according to the department’s annual report on consumer expenditures.

Year-over-year drops in spending are relatively rare – only three times in the last 25 years – and usually happen when the economy is coming out of a recession, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

In 2012, overall spending rose 3.5 percent compared with 2011, according to the data, which is not adjusted for inflation.