Consumer spending makes biggest jump in three months

New York

CONSUMER purchases climbed in September by the most in three months as incomes grew, signalling momentum in the biggest part of the US economy.

The 0.5 per cent advance in spending, which accounts for about 70 per cent of the economy, followed a 0.1 per cent decline the prior month that was revised lower, a Commerce Department report showed on Monday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey was a 0.4 per cent gain.